Two Swans
by Eveilae
Summary: [Naruto version of Six Swans] [COMPLETE WITH ALT ENDING] She's a girl who's ready to bleed for her brothers, cornered into a loveless marriage and chased by a witch. [TemaShika] [AU]
1. Silence

**Edit: Tweaked some things. Hopefully, for the better.**

**This fic is based mainly on Grimm's' Six Swans story, with some influence from the novel Daughter of the Forest, which was an interpretation of the Grimm tale. Some of you may know the story, some of you may not. I suggest you take look at it (search 'six swans story' in Google, and click the first link). It's not necessary, though.**

**(x) mean notes, which can be found below.**

Title**: Two Swans  
**Genre**: Fantasy/Romance  
**Characters**: major: Temari, Gaara, Kankurou, Shikamaru, Kazekage, Yashamaru. minor: Chouji, Ino, Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke, Kiba, Hinata, Neji, Temari's mother.  
**Relationships**: ShikaTema, subtly implied SasuNaru**

**Notes:**

**1.I tried to keep most of the characters at least partially IC. Yashamaru is not their aunt in this story, though, and is _very_ OCC. Pretty much the only similarity is the name. I needed a witch, sorry.  
****2. I know the title of Kazekage isn't passed on from father to son, but in this story it is.  
****3. I know Temari in the storyline fears Gaara as much as Kankurou does, but keep in mind, she's never met him before, and Kankurou has tried to hide the fearsome details from his sister.  
****4. Nettles: "Any of numerous plants having toothed leaves, unisexual apetalous flowers, and stinging hairs that cause skin irritation on contact." AKA, these plants hurt like a bitch if their hairs get into your hands.  
****5. Underwear, in this case, does not mean bra and panties, but a nightgown sort of thing. Garters: "a band worn around the leg to hold up a stocking (or around the arm to hold up a sleeve)." Girdle: "a band of material around the waist that strengthens a skirt or trousers." Both are not part of Temari's underwear.  
****6. I don't see Shikamaru ever really being Hokage, but go with it.

* * *

**

He used to enjoyed _hunting_, she remembers, sitting in the tower room by herself. The Kazekage, her father.

She never knew him very well. He kept himself very reserved, even before he was bewitched.

Their smell still surrounds her, and she misses them. But _she_ came, and she betrayed them, that _witch_. Yashamaru (x).

Ever since that day that their father returned from his hunting trip with a glazed look in his eyes, it all changed. She was too young to notice the change in her father, then, but Kankurou did. He feared this man their father had turned into, and so he whisked Temari away, to live in tower, far away from the castle. Temari hadn't cried—even then she knew she was different from the other children, and had to keep composed at all times.

And so she stayed at the tower, and didn't hate her older brother for keeping her there. She would sneak outside and lay on the sand that lined the tower for several meters. Or she would train hard, to be ready to show Kankurou how much she grew since the last time he visited.

Their father was so intent on the birth of his new son, he didn't even notice Temari's absence. Her mother noticed, but she was kept in bed and only the Kazekage was allowed to see her. He was making plans, secret plans, that he let no one know of. And the day the new baby boy was born, their mother died, and their father planted an evil seed in the infant, but not even he knew the extent of what he had done.

And with their mother dead, a new woman appeared in the castle. His father announced his desire to wed this woman, for he had found her in a cottage with her aged mother once, as he was lost in the woods. Her mother had helped him find his way out of the woods, in exchange for bringing the young woman out into castle society. But he claimed to have fallen in love with her, and soon they were indeed married.

She was beautiful, this Yashamaru, more beautiful than any other, it seemed, but Kankurou felt her true nature, and went to visit Temari more and more. And it carried on this way for years and years, with Temari filling up her time as best she could, with Kankurou worrying about her as well as the worsening state of their kingdom, with the whole castle fearing Gaara.

Kankurou hid his own fear of Gaara from Temari, but he never brought the little boy to see his older sister. In fact, Kankurou had covered up the girl's disappearance by saying she had been killed by a giant snake several months before Gaara had been born, so Gaara had no idea Temari even existed.

The Kazekage, their father, would take Gaara away for days on end, and the two of them would return, tired and serious. Sometimes it seemed to Kankurou that even the Kazekage was afraid of his own creation. In fact, almost everyone stayed out Gaara's way if they could afford to, except Yashamaru. She spoiled the little redhead rotten, but Gaara never seemed to like her any more than he liked every other person in the castle, including his own brother.

There was something about him . . . strange things happened in his presence, but Gaara never seemed to be able to explain them. Rumor had it that Yashamaru was teaching witchcraft in secret. No one dared say it to the Kazekage or Yashamaru's face though.

Just as no one dared call her witch Yashamaru, as they all knew her as, instead of Queen Yashamaru.

This could have gone on forever, or for the remainder of their lives, at least.

It could have, but it didn't. Kankurou was the heir to the title of Kazekage (x), after all, and there were several obscure family members who thought they might have a shot at the title if the boy were out of their way. Usually, Kankurou traveled with at least one guard, but there were times he would sneak away—like when he would leave to visit Temari—and travel by himself.

It was on one of these occasions that an assassin caught up with him. His face covered, and the sharp kunai held skillfully in his hand, he attacked Kankurou. The boy received training worthy of the title he would one day receive, but this was not nearly enough to save him from the blow.

Gaara's powers were. It didn't help Kankurou's fear of his youngest sibling when the sand flew around the man and blew him to bloody pieces. But Kankurour couldn't deny the fact that he owed Gaara his life. So, he decided to return the favor. He snuck Gaara out with him as well, one day, deciding with was time his youngest sibling met their sister.

Temari remembers that day perfectly, even though it wasn't an especially amazing day, climate-wise. It was temperate, not too cold, not too warm, and she sat up in her chair by the window, studying the clouds. They would bore her eventually, as they always did. She wasn't the type to lay about and do nothing. She had to be moving, be busy, or she would feel the loneliness of the tower.

Neither Temari nor Kankurou knew that Gaara housed in him the dormant spirit of Yashamaru's mother, the old hag in the forest who had first bewitched their father into thinking he was lost. Yashamaru planned to take over the Sand kingdom and rule it with her mother by her side, but they didn't know this yet either, the three Sand siblings.

Kankurou let the boy follow him, but he didn't take his hand, he didn't even make an attempt to help him or even touch him. Disgust, fear and suppressed jealousy had built a wall between them that neither of them wanted to admit to. But it was there, and Kankurou refused to tear it down.

Unfortunately, the hag inside Gaara was awakened from her usual slumber by the boy's excitement, and she saw all that unfolded. The tower, the reel of thread, the sister, everything, and she realized that this could very well ruin their entire plan. So she waited out the trip.

Meanwhile, Gaara, completely oblivious to the creature inside him, fell in love with his older sister. She was the most beautiful creature—as all sisters are to their younger siblings while they're in their youth, and she was the strongest, and the all around best person he knew. And she couldn't help but like him, too(x). After all, he was the first person she had seen in years besides Kankurou, and as much as Temari loved her older brother, no one wants to have the same person as company for years on end.

He reminded her of her father, of a family before the witch.

She made him feel loved, for possibly the first time in his life. The only other person to have shown him any kind of endearment was his stepmother Yashamaru. He loved her, of course, for she treated him like a son, but Temari was his sister, his real flesh and blood. The only flesh and blood that seemed to like him sincerely.

Gaara was sad to leave, but Kankurou knew they couldn't be gone long before Yashamaru would notice. They returned to the castle, and as far as they knew, no one had noticed their disappearance. While Gaara slept that night, though, the old hag relayed the information to Yashamaru. Yashamaru, angered that this _child_, this _male, _thought he was intelligent enough to think he could get away with hiding something from her, made two small white shirts, one for Kankurou, and one for Temari, and carefully entwined enchantments with the thread.

They would suffer for their arrogance and pride, she threatened.

And she waited for Kankurou to go visit his sister once more, and when he did, she trailed him. It wasn't an especially long walk for anyone who knew the way, but since she was not using the reel of thread, she had to follow him with her own magics. This tired her out, but she knew this mission was important is she ever wanted to succeed in her goal.

Finally they arrived at the tower, and as Kankurou and Gaara were greeting the girl at the entrance, the witch threw a shirt over Kankurou's head, and headed towards Temari to do the same.

She didn't take into account loyalty, for she had never felt it, nor love, because her heart was cold and hard. But Gaara, young as he was, knew loyalty, and knew love, and with those two feelings in mind, pushed Temari aside and the shirt fell onto him instead.

And Temari's two brothers flew away, across the lake, and into the skies, now swans and not boys. And Temari herself fled into the tower, and locking the doors leading up to the highest room, and hid. She didn't know what else to do in the face of danger. She had never experience danger, because her brother had always shielded her from such things. And so she hid.

Yashamaru let her go, and returned to the castle to find a way to return Gaara back to his proper form, for her mother had been transformed along with the youngest sibling. She assumed Temari would be too frightened to leave the tower, in any case.

The girl didn't know her way back to the castle, Yashamaru reasoned, so she would not be able to cause a ruckus.

And Temari sits in the tower, crying for her two brothers, and for her own weakness. She knows that she must go save her brothers, for they each saved her, Kankurou in hiding her in this tower, and Gaara in taking her blow. Now it is her turn. But she is afraid, more afraid than she has ever been in her entire life. Even more frightened than in the winter were the food had been sparse, and she had thought she might starve.

So she gathers the few things she owns, a necklace from her brother, her dress, her girdle, her garters, the underwear she had greeted her siblings in, and a pair of needles in case her clothes rip.

She looks at herself in the mirror. It is lined in a simple golden design, and she remembers when her brother brought it to her. The girl she sees the mirror looks so small, and so weak. How can this person save her brothers? Tying up her short hair into four ponytails, she gives her reflection a determined glare before turning away, and leaving the tower for good.

She's leaving behind that girl, the one that is scared and looks so young. Once she's out of the tower, she'll be a stronger person, someone who is able to save the people she cares for instead of having to wait to be saved.

And the next day, when Yashamaru returns to do away from the girl, she only encounters an empty room that smells of feathers and of youth. Her cry is heard far and wide, causing all birds in earshot to flee to the sky in terror.

* * *

Temari rests in a small hut, tired from walking all through the night. She had not stopped for fear that if she did wild animals, or Yashamaru would catch up to her. When the sun rises, she feel relieved, as if her enemies will not find her as the sun watches over her.

Inside the hut are six beds, but she is still afraid to rest so openly, so she hides underneath one of the beds, and sleeps until dusk. She is awakened by the sound of wings flapping outside. Both afraid and hopeful, she crawls out from under the bed, and looks out the window.

A few feet away, two swans are landing on the ground, their feathers falling from them as they do so. By the time their feet meet the soil they are completely human.

"Kankurou! Gaara!" she cries as she rushes out to meet them. She is sobbing with joy; glad that the curse has worn off, and that she and her brothers have been reunited. But her joy quickly leaves her as they begin to speak.

"Temari, you must leave this place at once!" Kankurou urges, pulling on her arm as he speaks. She follows him and Gaara as they lead her into a forest, where the trees block all view of the sun and she feels cold.

"Why, Kankurou, what's wrong?" she asks, worried.

"Yashamaru's spies live there. You are lucky you slept under the bed, for they came around midday to have their meal. Had you slept on one of the bed they would have found you and brought you to Yashamaru, and to your death." They finally stop running, and pause on the side of a lake. Gaara stands on the side, glancing at Temari nervously.

"Temari, we cannot stay long," Gaara whispers in a low voice.

"What?" The girl cries, staring at her siblings in disbelief. No, this cannot be true. The curse has not yet been rid of? Was one day not enough torture?

"We can only stay as humans from the time the sun touches the horizon to the moment it disappears from sight," Kankurou explains sadly, not looking at her as he says so. He doesn't want to see the pain on her face.

"How can I help you?" Temari whispers urgently, grabbing her brother's shoulders as she does so. She _has _to help them, if it's the last thing she does. She feels the sun sinking lower, even though she cannot see it for herself. "How can I get rid of the curse?"

Gaara jerks his head up to look at her, his eyes serious and desperate. "You cannot. I won't let you." He takes her arm gently, uneasily, unsure if this is the right way to do this. He's never had much experience with touch. She looks at him, unknowing of the uneasiness he feels, and then up at Kankurou. Kankurou nods slowly, agreeing with Gaara.

"The sacrifice is too much, and I don't want you hurt. Just flee from the Sand kingdom, Temari, and find yourself a good home. Forget the two of us, for we will be content if we know you are safe from Yashamaru's clutches." She scoffs at him, and glares.

How dare he? She has no need for a home, and when he says home, she knows what he really means. He's implying that she needs a _man_ to protect her. Doesn't he know her better than that? She knows how to take care of herself. She been training her mind and body for years, and he's telling her to go find herself a bodyguard husband? This makes the anger bubble up inside her, in a way she hasn't felt in quite a while.

Yet, when it really mattered, she thinks sadly, she _had_ needed to be protected, first by Kankurou, and then by Gaara. She does not consciously acknowledge it, but she feels that she will not be able to the live with herself if she does not return the favor. If is not able to show them her own strength.

"Home? You mean husband. What a _ridiculous_ thought, Kankurou. I want nothing more than to help the two of you, and I will not love a man or bear his children until I have freed the two of you from the spell. That is my utter promise to the two of you, and I will not break it!" Her eyes are fiery with passion, and her brothers realize they will not be able to shake her from this path.

Gaara looks about ready to try, though, before Kankurou shoots him a look, silencing him.

Reluctantly, they both give in.

"To free us, you must not speak, or laugh, or make any sound, or communication through letters until you have fulfilled a specific task." The sun is setting, nearly gone, but none of them know this. They _feel_ it, though, somehow, and Kankurou rushes through the rest of the explanation vaguely. "Make us each a shirt. But not just _any_ shirt, but shirts made of nettles(x). You cannot cry out in pain, or ask for assistance. Now, do you see? This is why you cannot do this."

Gaara, in one last attempt to stop her from attempting this task, takes her hands to him and hugs them. His hands are cold around her own, and she wants to wrap him up in blankets to make him warmer. "I like your hands as they _are_."

And then the two of them rise through the trees, now swans once more, leaving their sister surrounded in shadows and darkened by her doubt and fear. She whispers a quiet goodbye to her brothers, fully conscious of the fact that this might be the last time in a while before she will be able to speak once more.

* * *

The next week, she gathers the nettles and her sewing needles, and begins her task. She finds it hard enough to sew, though, with the meager skills she has. Kankurou attempted briefly to show her how to sew, for he didn't want her to raise herself like a boy, but he failed miserably. So even before she begins, her task seems impossible.

And the pain is worse than she expected. In the beginning she ends up having to rip a thin piece of fabric from the bottom of her dress and gag herself to hold back the yelps as the needles sink painfully into her flesh. She sits high in the branches of a tree, to avoid contact with others and the teeth and claws of the creatures that dwell in the forest.

"Temari, speak to us," her brothers cry when they visit her at dusk, but she ignores them. She will save them, even if it costs her youth, her beauty, and her life. They eventually relent, and are content with hunting for her food as she works, in silence, up in the branches. She is glad, because now she can work instead of wasting hours looking for food herself.

She is done with the sleeves of the first shirt.

And one day, a group is coming through the forest, mounted on horses, and loud compared to the usual relative quiet of the forest. She brings up her legs, and climbs higher in the tree to avoid attracting their notice.

Temari does not know this is the Hokage of the Leaf kingdom, who is known far and wide for his eye for detail and above average intelligence. He is traveling with his fairly large hunting party, although not for the hunting. He'll leave that to the noblemen, particularly Kiba and Naruto. He finds that he would rather look up at the clouds and _think_. He cannot even get that much pleasure in _this_ forest, thanks to the trees that block his eyesight and make this whole place so much darker.

He looks up every so often anyway, just to make sure. One of these times he catches a glimpse of white in the branches. White? He knows there are no tree plants in this forest, nor are any white birds native to this land. His curiosity grabs hold of him, and he asks the party to stop. Kiba, slightly miffed that his hunt is being interrupted, asks gruffly what is the matter.

Shikamaru, for this is the Hokage's(x) name, points upwards towards where he saw the white flash. "I think there is someone up there," he says simply.

Naruto immediately opens his mouth to offer to go up there and look, but Sasuke places a hand on his shoulder to silence him. Shikamaru is grateful; he isn't sure he wants to scare what is up there, and Naruto would no doubt do that. Without meaning to, of coarse, but still. Naruto does not know the meaning of subtlety.

"Is there someone up there?" he yells up at the branches. He catches a slight movement in the branch that seems substantiates his claim. "It's okay, we're not planning on hurting you."

A flash of white comes down, and he wonders how the creature can fall so slowly, so gently. Then he realizes it is only a piece of clothing. It falls silently at his feet.

"Well, that's it then," Ino says, picking up the fabric gently. She sniffs it and grimaces, putting some space between it and her by passing it to another noblewoman, her friend, Sakura. Sakura rolls her eyes in response and gazes at the cloth. "What in the blazes is a girdle (x) doing in the middle of a forest?"

"Perhaps a woman was bathing in the lake, and her girdle blew away," Naruto says, brushing the subject away. "What does it matter? Let's move on."

But Shikamaru isn't convinced. "Hinata, Neji, can you please check up there, just to be sure." The two cousins are members of the Hyuuga witch clan, which have been age-old allies with the Leaf kingdom for as far back as their records go. Their white eyes are telltale signs of this, and with these eyes they can see farther than an average man could.

"Neji," Hinata says in voice no louder than a whisper, and Neji turns her to her, a questioning look in his eyes. Hinata rarely speaks so directly. "Let me. If this is . . . I mean, this could be a . . . a woman. It isn't decent." It takes Neji a moment or two to understand exactly what she means, but he nods once he does.

And so Hinata glances up at the tree branches with her powerful white eyes, but not for very long. "You're right, Shikamaru. There's a girl up there. I think she's . . . sewing."

Sewing? Shikamaru wonders, staring up at the branches in thought. How will he approach this? "We know you are up there," he yells up again. "Once again, I promise you we are not here to do you harm. We simply wish to know why a lady would choose such a place as this to do her sewing." Once again, instead of answering, another article of clothing is thrown down at the hunting party.

Ino names it immediately. "Garters.(x)" She looks up at the branches. "What is this woman _doing_?"

Naruto crosses his arms, and answers her, although it was mostly a rhetorical question. "I think she wants us to leave. Maybe she _likes_ sewing in trees."

Sasuke nods in agreement. "Naruto is right—"

"That's a first," Ino mutters as she coughs into her hand. Naruto shoots her an angry look, but doesn't say anything, allowing Sasuke to continue.

And so he does, pretending he hadn't noticed the mini-spar between the two. "I don't think we should interfere with something that has nothing to do with us."

Shikamaru ignores them both. "At least tell me your name," he yells up in the general direction Hinata had pointed out. He's finding himself intrigued, and little enough seems to do that. Chouji, the man who knows him best, seems to understand this, and says nothing.

This time a dress (x) comes fluttering down. "What if she is trying to tell us to help her?" Sakura asks, worried now. "We can't just _leave_ her here."

Naruto is about to argue with her, when Sasuke silences him again. Naruto grinds his teeth instead, and glares at Sasuke.

Shikamaru picks up the dress from the ground, and passes it to Kiba. "Find her, and bring her down here." The other all stare at Shikamaru in shock—except for Chouji. Even Sasuke and Neji, whose expressions are usually serious and stoic, have their mouths gaping a little. Kiba eventually snaps out of his shocked state, and begins climbing up, following the scent on the dress.

It had smelled of blood and birds, but he doesn't mention that to Shikamaru.

After climbing a little way up, he finds her, dressed only in her underwear (x), staring at him blankly. Perhaps there was a bit of shock in her eyes, but she didn't make a sound, so Kiba wasn't sure. She seemed unhurt, though, except for her hands, which are red and raw and bleeding. In her hands he sees what she was sewing, and it resembles cloth, except it's made of nettles and stained with blood.

She smells, horrid, and it's quite obvious that she hasn't bathed in quite some time. He plows on, despite her rancid smell.

She is obviously mad, anyway, in his eyes, and he feels sympathetic for the confused girl. "It's okay," he calls to her slowly, as he would to a child. "I won't hurt you. I'm from the Leaf kingdom, and the Hokage won't hurt you either."

She eyes seem to show recognition at the mention of the Leaf kingdom, and of the Hokage, and approaches slowly. She never lets go of the thing in her hands, even though she looks precariously close to falling off the branch. He takes her hands, avoiding the barbs, and leads—although some would call it carry—her down to where the rest of the hunting party is waiting.

The main hound dog—and Kiba's personal favorite—pads over and sniffs at the new arrival. Kiba—and the rest of the hunting party—waits for the dog's assessment of the girl. They trust the dog's intuition almost more than they trust their own.

They sigh inwardly when the dog wags his tail. Kiba calls the dog to him, muttering quiet phrases of encouragement and satisfaction.

Meanwhile, Temari looks at the crowd, dressed in fine hunting clothing, and with looks of pity and subtle fear in their eyes. She does not care about them, or what they think about her, but she knows that the Leaf kingdom is far enough from the Sand to make it difficult for Yashamaru to find her.

Well, she hopes.

"I'm Shikamaru," a man introduces himself carefully, looking her over charily. She's been in the forest for sometime, he notices, and on her own, it seems. She nods to show she has understood, but doesn't reply. Is she dumb? he wonders. He takes note of her injured hands, and of the nettle cloth she clutches in her grip still. Once he's sure he has assimilated all the necessary details, he takes a moment to clear his throat to speak again. This small instant leaves his eyes free to wander, and they fall to her bloody hands. He wants to clean away the blood, and this feeling surprises him. "Will you come with me?"

She nods once again, ignoring them all but him. When he offers her a seat in front of her on his horse, she agrees, but she refuses to allow him to help her up. She's not a delicate woman, and because of her isolated upbringing, she doesn't even know she's supposed to be. She hugs the horse between her thighs, not looking down, in case the food she ate that morning comes back up.

She's never been on a horse before, but she doesn't want _them_ to know that.

When Chouji offers to take the nettle cloth away from her, she shakes her head, and hugs it closer. That is the extent of communication she has with the others for the rest of the trip.

Ino and Sakura exchange wary looks, unsure of what has caused their Hokage to act so . . . strangely. Ino is slightly jealous of this woman, who has so quickly managed to cut through Shikamaru's mental shield. It took her _years_ to do so.

And so the hunting expedition is cut short—to Naruto and Kiba's annoyance—and they head back the way they came, to the Leaf kingdom.

Temari ignores all these people for one simple reason; she believes if she pays too much attention to them she knows she will fear them. It has been many, many years since she has been in the presence of so many people. It has been only Kankurou and Gaara for a long, long time now. But this will make things easy, this opportunity. She can do her task without having to worry about food or wild animals, or Yashamaru.

She mourns her brothers, though, who will no doubt not be able to find her again for a long time. As she rides in front of this man who introduced himself as Shikamaru she hopes that there are nettles in the Leaf kingdom.

* * *

**I got the idea for this when I saw a story titled Seven Brothers, Seven Sisters, or something like that. It reminded me of the Six Swans story, as the phrase seven brothers always does. And I got to thinking about doing a Naruto version. It was originally going to be Naruto-based, but Naruto doesn't have a family at all, so I couldn't really start it well.**

**And so, TEMARI and her brothers!**

**Show me some love, people.**


	2. Marriage

**Second installment, baby.**

**Thank you, _Ling-Hao_, _JJ, __Black Hikari, MisChibiOus, Intuition, _and _Uzamaki Liliana_****. I love people who take the time and try and help me. I'm attempting to make the characters more IC and I've also read the first Inuyasha story I've liked.**

Title**: Two Swans  
**Genre**: Fantasy/Romance  
**Characters**: major: Temari, Gaara, Kankurou, Shikamaru, Kazekage, Yashamaru. minor: Chouji, Ino, Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke, Kiba, Hinata, Neji.  
**Relationships**: ShikaTema, minor SasuNaru, implied KibaHina, one-sided InoShika**

**(x) means notes, which appear below.**

**Notes:**

**1.By dumb, Shikamaru means that she can't speak. Has nothing to do with her intelligence. Most of you can probably figure that out, but I thought I should just add that anyway.  
****2.I'm using Lady and Lord as opposed to Japanese honorifics.  
****3. Mine is an actual Japanese name that actually means resolute protector. I officially love the Internet.

* * *

**

Things are a lot harder in this Leaf kingdom than she thought it would be. She is used to heat waves, to flopping down on the sand hills, with the granules underneath her, and being able to take off her clothes to go swim in the lake.

It rains too much in this place, too much by far. Which, in turn, means it is _too_ cold for her tastes. The fact that she is warm because she has been locked in her room doesn't make her feel better. Instead, it makes her want to scream.

There also isn't any sand in this place. It's full of trees and grass and all those damn people. They stick their noses up at her because she entered their castle in her underwear. Even the castle seems to think lowly of her, with its high ceilings and stupid paintings of trees and flowers.

They even go so far as to name their people after flowers. Sakura. It makes Temari sick.

There is so much rain, but no lakes. And she highly doubts that any of these people would take the time to strip themselves of their pretty clothes and giant egos to swim in a lake.

She can't even go out and look for nettle plants. She can't even continue her task. She curses these damn people again, and throws a chair against the door in her anger. The room is in shambles, ripped to shreds. Temari's hands are itching to get their hands on that Hokage again. He was so _arrogant_, locking her in here, under the pretense of helping her. Right, he's so goddamned helpful he locked in this room.

This cold room. She sleeps with three covers.

They've locked her in her room ever since she clawed that blonde's face up, so maybe it wasn't the Hokage's initial idea to keep her isolated in her room. But he did it, and that's what matters.

They took her nettle shirts away, as well. Even with only the sleeves of one shirt finished, she still feels extremely hopeless. It had taken her weeks to sew two horrible sleeves, and now all her work is ruined. Those weeks of biting back the pain were wiped off the map so easily. She wants nothing more than to _kill_ those bastards.

To think she had trusted them! Despite their haughtiness, their rain, their damned _everything_, she had trusted them. She supposed it was probably because she hadn't met enough people to know they could lock her in her room for about three days. And to think, she had thought they would make her task easer!

She wants to scream, but that would be childish. It would also completely nullify all her efforts to save her brothers. She can't afford to scream, not yet.

She watches the chair break into pieces, and falls into a heap on the ground. She grips her hair tightly in her hands, as if pulling will somehow call back her nettle shirts. How is she going to go on with this, she wonders, the tears falling down her cheeks. She swallows the sobs that threaten to bubble up in her throat. Damn them. Wiping the stray tears viciously from her cheeks with her arm, she stands up again.

She's going to show these damn people that she's strong.

"You know, I don't know why I keep you here. You're so _troublesome_. I should _let_ you keep hurting yourself." It's him, that proud, arrogant Hokage of theirs. She has to bite her tongue to stop herself from launching her body at him in what would be a futile attempt to get back at him.

She doesn't answer, and even she if had been able to speak, she wouldn't have. She doesn't even look at him. He's not worth her attention. She keeps repeating that, as if it's her new mantra.

"I don't know what it is about you that _intrigues_ me, but . . . " He's standing next to her, but she still adamantly refuses to glance up. He's not worth it. Not worth her attention _at all_.

And then he's holding her hands, and it hurts. He's holding them too hard. She wants to pull away, but she's afraid that if she does she'll cry out. So she leaves them where they are. His own hands are cold, and it's a bittersweet kind of relief against her hot hands. "Why would you do this to yourself? I know you're not stupid. Were you _born_ dumb(x), I wonder? Or is this some sort of religious statute you're hell-bent on following?"

What does he care? All she wants are her nettles, and her needles, and her hands. It's all she needs. She needs to stay focused on her task if she's going to beat Yashamaru. If she's going to save her brothers. Focus, Temari, focus.

"I wonder how far you would go if I return to you those things." Her head perks up at his words, and she's faced with his toothy grin. "I knew it. It's not just _pain_ you're looking for. If that were true, you'd be content with anything, with breaking the window and using the glass to cut yourself. Or placing your finger in the flame of a candle. Then why is it?" He's too close. She doesn't like this, not at all.

Pulling her hands out of his, ignoring the pain, she places a good meter's distance between the two of them. "_Why do you do this_?" Instead of answering, she throws a piece of the broken chair at him. It hits him squarely in his chest, and Shikamaru's eyes widen in shock. She doubts anyone's ever hit him before, with the intent to hurt him. She's glad to be the first, then.

She's not _afraid _of him, like some people in castle seem to be, nor does she really respect him. She'll acknowledge him as a person, but until he returns to her what belongs to her, she won't do any more than that.

"I'll give you your nettles, then." Hope floods through her system. He's not that bad, all of a sudden, in her eyes. She can acknowledge him as nearly an equal, now. Only if he keeps his word, that is. "But I'll be quite honest with you. My people, they don't like you. You're a strange woman from the Sand kingdom, and you haven't been exactly _friendly _with them." Temari thinks back the last few encounters she's had with 'his people.' They needed to be lowered down a notch, so she had offered herself that task. They surrounded themselves with plants and sweet smells and peace, when all around them war and poverty littered the land.

"I don't know quite how to guarantee your safety here. And I doubt you like it locked in here at all hours." She nods, agreeing with him greatly. She'd agree to anything to get out of here, this cold room with its queer aroma and ugly view of the fields of flowers.

"Marry me."

Temari gapes at him, and she doesn't care how much she may resemble a fish. She's glad for her vow of silence, because there is no way she's going to find a response worthy of that sudden proposal.

"It's the only logical way, if you really think about it. And I have."

She has to think about this. Deep breathes, Temari. If she marries him, it doesn't even mean that she loves him. It doesn't even matter that she's betraying her kingdom by marrying someone from the Leaf. What is the loyalty she has for her people compared to the love she has for her brothers? If she marries this man, she can work in peace, and none will _dare_ stop her from her task, or try to harm her.

And those stuck-up people will have to call her _Lady_. Mere bonus, though.

Where are the cons of the situation?

Well, there aren't any if one is thinking practically. But she doesn't want to think practically.

She was trapped in a tower for years, but she knew the concept of marriage, and of love. She always expected her prince to come, as every girl does, and sweep her off her feet. They would have a beautiful wedding, and Kankurou's wife would be her best friend and bridesmaid.

And now she's going to get married for strategic reasons, to a man she isn't even sure she likes. This is the only part of this place that reminds her of the Sand kingdom. Her father married for love, one of the rare Kazekage to do so She's following in her family, footsteps it seems. She leans over and plants her lips chastely on his cheek. If he doesn't understand the meaning underneath that action, he's more of an idiot than she thinks.

"Good."

* * *

The wedding is worse than she ever expected it to be. It's too green, to begin with. In the middle of a field, no less, with a grove in the middle. That Shikamaru doesn't know her _at all_. If he did, he would have realized that she would like the beach better.

There she stands, clad in a dress that would be any woman's dream to wear, but feeling like sore thumb in a crowd of these elegant women. There's that blonde one, the one with the scratch still healing on her cheek. Temari can't help but grin.

Only for a moment though. They're all _ignoring_ her, if they can. She's going to marry their precious _Hokage_, and they aren't paying her any mind at all?

"So, you're going to tie down Shikamaru, are you?" Temari spins on her heels and finds herself face to face with that fat man that tags along with Shikamaru a lot. Chouji?

She cocks an eyebrow at him, but doesn't answer. Chouji laughs, and it's a nice, full laugh. It reminds her of . . . someone. Her father? She doesn't remember her father's laughter anymore.

"It's odd. I always thought he would marry Ino. You know, just because he'd find it too troublesome to keep her away any longer." He seems to catch the confusion in her eyes, because he elaborates. "Ino's the blonde woman that made a snooty remark on your sewing. She's been chasing after Shikamaru ever since we were kids. She liked Sasuke for years before that—all the girls did at one point or another—but no one can be blind to the _obvious_ attraction he has for Naruto." He points in the direction of the grove. Underneath a pair of trees she can vaguely make out too figures standing closely together. More than that. They're kissing, and quite passionately.

That must be Sasuke and Naruto.

Even though she and Chouji are fairly far away, she wonders how she could have made of the mistake of thinking they were doing anything else. As she watches, the blonde man slips a hand under the other's shirt. Temari glances away before she sees more than she thinks she should.

They don't have any decency for the important things in this castle, Temari notes. Sex is _private_.

Temari finds herself blushing, in any case, despite herself. Chouji laughs again. "They do that whenever they have the chance."

"Quite the blushing bride, isn't she?" Another person daring to speak to her? This must be her _lucky _day. Temari looks in the direction of the voice, and she finds herself eye to eye with a frowning woman. "I can't _believe_ I basically meet the bride on the wedding day. I'm his _mother_, for goodness sake!"

"Lady(x) Nara, Shikamaru only wanted to surprise you."

She scoffs, and crosses her arms over her chest angrily. "Chouji, _no one_ asked for your opinion." Temari frowns at this woman's rudeness, but her expression shifts to one of confusion when Chouji grins in response, instead of getting angry. This must be something habitual, then.

"Well, she certainly looks capable of bearing an heir and many more besides." With that, she turns and walks away, leaving Temari unsure whether she's just been insulted, or complimented.

"I think she likes you, Mine." Mine; it means resolute protector. They had no idea how incorrectly that name fit her. She hadn't gotten very far on her shirts. Her hands had needed to get used to the nettle stings all over again after being locked in her room, and the pain was horrible. Old wounds simply reopened and it had been all Temari could do to stop herself from screaming.

Most of the people in castle had ignored her, simply walking past her as if they couldn't see her bleeding hands. Temari convinced herself that she doesn't care. She doesn't need them accept her, or for them to understand her. All she needs if for them to not lock her in her room again.

That means she has to control herself as well. No more scratching up the Ladies' faces.

Shikamaru hadn't ignored her though. His people might have seen him as a heartless bastard, for ignoring his fiancé's hurt. Temari had chased them away, baring her teeth at them like some kind of animal to get her message across. She did not need his help. It was hard enough on her pride marrying him in the first place.

Temari gives Chouji a small smile and wanders away, perhaps to nibble away at some food before the ceremony. Something to make her feel better on this horrid day.

* * *

Shikamaru watches the people around him, carrying on and such, but doesn't quite care. They're being too loud, he can't even enjoy the clouds with such noise. He'll be glad when it's all over and he can go back to being lazy. Or at least, trying to be lazy.

When you're in charge of caring for an entire kingdom, it's rather hard to be lazy, no matter how much you may want to.

He hears someone approach, but he doesn't lift his head up to see. He has a good impression on who it is, anyway. "Your _dear _mother is in quite a mood, you know." Shikamaru grunts at his best friend, but doesn't feel up to answering. If Chouji is here to tease him, he's going to have him hung.

"She said Mine looks capable of bearing many children" Shikamaru snorts in amusement, and looks up at Chouji, finally relenting. His mother is bossy and demanding, but she is amusing, to say the least. She has gotten a little more mellow since his father died, though. But Shikamaru doesn't want to think about his father. Not today.

"What was the expression on her face when she said that? Mine's face, that is." _Keep your mind on Mine, Shikamaru,_ he scolds himself.

Chouji leans over to whisper this into his ear. "I think she was a bit insulted, truth be told." Shikanaru chokes back another laugh. His eyes find themselves traveling in her direction, actually. She's taking careful bites of the food, as if afraid it might be poisoned. In fact, knowing some of the people he knows, it just might be. This time his laughter erupts from his body in waves.

"Why am I even doing this, Chouji? I think I might be marrying a woman too much like my mother." Shikamaru glances over at Mine once again. She really does look wonderful in that dress. He's glad he had Hinata take care of it; she really does have a good eye. Beyond the obvious, that is.

"Like father, like son." Does that mean he'll . . . No. He promised himself he would't think about that. He sees Hinata—what a coincidence, he was _just_ thinking about her—clutching Kiba's arm like an anchor, approach the place where Mine is shoving food down her throat. Although he can't hear what she's saying, or read lips from this distance, he can pretty much guess generally what is going on.

Kiba seems to have gruffly complimented Mine, but she seems more offended than flattered. Hinata is obviously trying cover up for him, as she always does. Mine shrugs, but her lips remain shut, as always.

The two of them walk off, and soon begin a conversation with some other people, most of which Shikamaru neither cares to notice, or really _has_ to. Mine continues to shovel food into her mouth. That dress is going to be torn to shreds if she continues this way, Shikamaru realizes. Perhaps that's the point. Her own pathetic revenge against the Leaf people?

He stands up, about to head over there and forcibly stop her from eating, but several people notice his sudden movement and begin clapping. Oh, damn it. They think the wedding's starting. Mine looks over at him, a questioning look in her eyes.

Well, there's no time like the present, is there?

* * *

The sound of wings flapping surrounds her, and she feels good again. A different good than she's felt in her time in this place. The good only her brothers can give her.

"Temari? What the _hell_ are you doing here!" Kankurou is furious, and looks just about ready to kill her. Temari is scared of him for the first time in her life. She never knew he had such a temper, but she sees it in his eyes. He's furious at her.

Temari's shoulders slouch, and she motions at her clothes. She wore nice ones on purpose. Temari wants to show her brother that they are treating her well here, and that she is comfortable. That these Leaf people aren't going to kill her any time soon. She also brings forth the finished shirt.

But all Gaara sees are her hands. "Temari! You have to stop this! Your hands will never be the same again. I bet you can't even aim a kunai properly now!" He grasps them loosely in his own, and stares up at her with those pleading eyes. Temari looks away. They know she won't stop her task, not when she's gotten so far.

"You've been silent for more than a year, now, sister. I just don't know how I will feel being human at your expense, Temari." Kankurou feels guilty? She shakes her head furiously. No! She is choosing to do this, of her own free will. "Well, at least we know you're safe. It's been one hell of year since you've been gone. We were afraid you'd been killed." Gaara nods heatedly, and hugs his older sister tightly.

"I'll come to see you every day, okay, Temari? You'll be here, right?" The tears are threatening to spill, but she holds them back by sheer will. She nods and smiles down at her youngest brother. _This_ is what she's been silent for, this is what she's been_ fighting_ for. If feels as if she's been doing this all by default the last year. Now a newfound passion as been reawakened in her at the sight of her brothers.

Even so, a second later all she is left with is the scent of swan and a feather in her hair.

She stands up, and gathers her things quickly. It took her a whole year to finish one shirt. She finds herself going from zealous to despairing, and doubting herself. How will she manage this?

And meanwhile, she is finding it harder and harder to keep the promise she made to her brothers. It's obvious what everyone expects of her . . . of them. Shikamaru and Mine. It's been several months now, and even Lady Ino asks her every so often if she's feeling any different. By that, she simply means to ask if the two of them have procreated. If only they knew he hadn't laid a hand on her this whole time.

He's not a womanizer. He's not much a talker either, but Temari doesn't mind. She likes taking a break from the nettles and the pain they inflict, to lie down on the field next to him and gaze up at the clouds. They lie there in complete silence, but she feels comfortable in a way she isn't sure she's ever felt, even with her brothers.

But she will not fall in love with him. She _definitely_ isn't ready to . . . have that kind of relationship with him. Not until she has freed her brothers from the swanskin they are trapped in. Not until her vow of silence is broken.

As soon as she's back in room, her nettles and needles at her side, she allows herself to feels torn, like her hands. And then she grabs ring she had been given on her wedding day, which she keeps on a chain around her neck, and she throws it out the window.

* * *

**Oooh, sap. How delicious.**


	3. Betrayal

**I listen to Fiona Apple and Aimee Mann while writing this story. Maybe if you listen to them as you read it will someone make this story all the better?**

Title**: Two Swans  
**Genre**: Fantasy/Romance  
**Characters**: major: Temari, Gaara, Kankurou, Shikamaru, Yashamaru, Chouji. minor: Sakura, Hinata, Naruto, Kiba, Leaf warriors.  
**Relationships**: ShikaTema, mentioned one-sided InoShika**

**Notes:**

**1.The first part of this chapter is in first person. Why? I dunno, for a chance, I suppose. I got tired of writing in third person. I haven't written in first person in a long time.  
****2. Chakra (as defined in "is thought to be an energy node in the human body" of which there are typically believed to be seven. In this story, the magic that is used is heavily associated with their chakra. So when Yashamaru mentions the visible chakra, she basically means she can _see_ the magic potential in her.  
****3. Slight yuri (although _technically_, it's not)  
****4. There's a reason why Shikamaru thinks his people would do this to Temari/Mine. I'm not going to tell you yet, though. TEE HEE.  
****5. It should be fairly easy to figure out what's going on, no? If not, I'll spell it out for you: non-graphic rape.

* * *

So, the Hokage took a wife? It makes me(x) laugh at how clever that girl really thinks she is. As if I'm not intelligent enough to find a subtle way of destroying her despite being married to the Hokage.**

And, as rumors have it, she's completely mute, and enjoys self-mutilation. So she wants to reverse the curse, does she? I'll kill her before I'll have that little girl surpass me.

It takes several days of preparations before I can begin my plan. Hopefully for her, they'll kill her with my first plan and I'll spare her the suffering. You know, I'm rather _merciful_, despite all my other faults. What is so horrible about me, anyway? Name me a human that doesn't desire a good life, as my mother and I do. Why should we be at a fault for being human?

I come to her first as a handsome stranger in a dream. People are easily managed and convinced in dreams, which is why I use them often. I mention how I am a mage, fighting against the evil clutches of Yashamaru. I am under a curse, but I am forbidden to talk in detail about it. I ask her to meet me at dawn, by the grove. After only a couple of days watching this castle, I've noted that the fat man comes to train at the grove at dawn every third day.

I meet her there, and she's different from the last time I saw her. She's grown. In fact, she is quite nearly a woman at this point. Not quite, though. In my eyes, for one to truly be considered a woman one must give up something precious. It is the trial all girls go through, the realization that men take things away, and as women came from the earth, men destroy us like they destroy the earth.

No, she is not yet a woman. She still thinks that men will treat her with respect, that men have the capability to love, when all they ever care about is themselves and destruction.

She is lovely, though. Her hair is down, and it falls down in wavy tresses of blonde. It is too dark still, to make out the exact color of her eyes, but they have an intelligent shine to them. It's too bad she is so resolute in her task. If I thought I had any chance of persuading her, I would have asked her to be my apprentice. It is quite a waste of talent, though. One can practically see the magic coming off her in waves, although it is really just visible chakra(x) seen through eyes that share the same powers.

What a waste.

I approach her with a swagger in my step, and a carefully placed smile on my face. Even so, when she catches sight of me, her dark eyes flare. What is this? I know my disguise is perfect, how has she seen through it?

My own eyes, I suppose. I can never quite keep the magic out of them. Anyone with enough ability can spot it in another, just as I have seen hers. Has her own chakra grown so much that she can spot it? I wonder vaguely what exactly she's been doing these past two years. Well, it is my one major fault, this uncontrollable charka of mine, but it will certainly not be my downfall. Before she can say I thing, in a flash I am at her side (x). I pin her hands to the tree as I ram her body up against it. Then, looking in her eyes with every bit of malice I can accumulate, I kiss her.

She struggles against me, but I am stronger than I look. I manage to make quite a production out of it, in any case. I know a woman's body better than I know a man's—and I know a man's body quite well. Lips here, hands there, and I know she'll feel good despite her desire not to. I feel her body wriggling against mine, and not completely in her struggle to escape. It really is too bad she's so focused on that silent task, because if she weren't, I would have her moaning.

But I don't need her to moan. I hear the man approach, and I know my mission has been accomplished perfectly. "Until our next meeting, my love," I whisper loudly enough for the fat man to hear, and then I flee, pretending I haven't noticed the fat man.

Perfect.

* * *

Shikamaru was like a brother to him. He had been lonely as a child, and the others had teased him for his size and awkwardness. But the future Hokage—the future _Hokage_—had taken notice of him, and had befriended him.

"I saw the kindness in you, Chouji," Shikamaru told him years later, when Chouji asked him to explain his actions.

Shikamaru believed and trusted Chouji and Chouji did the same for Shikamaru. And so, when Shikamaru had divulged his plan to marry the strange woman, Mine, Chouji had not doubted his judgment. Not just because he was Hokage, but because Chouji trusted him more than one else.

But how can he deny the horrible mistake Shikamaru made in marrying this girl, when he sees her pressed against another man? At least she isn't moaning against his hand, because Chouji does not know if he would have been able to control himself at the thought of her silence being yet another ruse.

"Queen Mine," he says coldly, approaching the grove steadily, his anger settling in his hand, which rests on his sword hilt. Just in case that bastard decides to come back for another round.

She looks at him, shock filling her eyes. Her lips are still slightly spread, as if awaiting more kisses from this secret lover of hers. She's shaking her head furiously, perhaps trying to deny the fact that Chouji has seen them.

"I will tell Shikamaru, because he deserves better than this." Than you, he wants to say, but he doesn't dare. She _is_ married to Shikamaru, after all. She reaches out and grabs his arm with her ugly, callused hands and shakes her head all the more. Her blonde hair bobs as she does so —he realizes indistinctly that she's put it down from its usual confinements—, and her eyes are pleading with him. Is she so desperate to keep her place as Lady Mine, Chouji wonders to himself. Had he figured her so incorrectly?

"You're not going to persuade me not to, wretch."

He can't read her eyes. He's seen the two of them, Shikamaru and Mine, talking without words over the food on the dinner table. "Her eyes say _volumes_," Shikamaru has told him. These books must not be in any language Chouji understands. He's seen her lips say much, much more.

He pulls his arm away, and walks off, without another word. He doesn't want to _look_ at her anymore. Chouji is afraid that if she somehow makes him not want to tell Shikamaru, that he'll let it pass. Either way, Shikamaru will get hurt.

Chouji knows the king better than anyone. He knows how much Shikamaru hates to be tricked, and know that he would rather know the truth and be hurt by it, than be lied to and be content. This is why he's heading towards the castle before Mine can persuade him not to. He doesn't want to imagine Shikamaru's face when he tells him, but he can't help it.

He'll be heartbroken. He may say that she 'intrigues' him, but Chouji's never seen him like this before. Chouji had begun to think he was asexual, with him ignoring the women around him, even the one who was actually interested in him for _him, _and not his title and his power. Lady Ino. Shikamaru cares about Lady Mine, though, quite a lot. Chouji hates to have to be the one to stomp all that to the ground.

* * *

Temari doesn't chase after Chouji. After all, what can she say to convince him what he was saw was _wrong_ without words? Damn you, Yashamaru, she thinks. How could she have been so damn _naïve_? Had she really thought there was someone like her, another cursed being? She had been stupid, and Yashamaru had taken advantage of that. Now, Shikamaru will think she is scum.

It doesn't matter, though, does it? All that matters is getting her brothers back to normal. It shouldn't matter what Shikamaru thinks about her at all. After all, he cannot divorce her without causing quite a scandal. He's too lazy to make that much effort.

She returns to the castle, the morning dew still lingering on her skin. She changes clothes; burying the dress she had been donning somewhere deep underneath her bed. She doesn't want to relive the feeling of those hands on her. It felt good despite the person causing the sensations, and Temari is certain this is what Yashamaru was counting on. But the things she made her feel can't possibly be good, not if Yashamaru did bring them to her.

But they weren't. She's felt that way before. And it wasn't with Yashamaru . . .

Brushing those thoughts aside roughly, she picks up her second nettle shirt—one sleeve has been completed. Delving into the painful work, she can concentrate on sewing and biting back cries that still want to come forth, even after more than a year of work. She can stop herself from fretting about Shikamaru.

Remember Gaara and Kankurou instead, she tells herself. After all, she's doing this for them. Gaara, the small brother she knew for so short a time before he saved her from a horrible fate. His bright red hair that falls into his face occasionally. The black bags that surround his eyes from his strange insomnia that no amount of sleeping potions seem to cure. His ever-changing expressions that seem to alter at the slightest thing. She loves every little bit of him.

Kankurou. The brother that has been with her since birth. He taught her nearly all she knows, and she treasures him greatly. The purple ink on his face, and the clothes he used to wear. She never understood why he always hid himself beneath those guises, but no bit of convincing managed to stop him. Well, before the curse. He can't put purple ink on his skin as a swan.

Gaara and Kankurou. Gaara and Kankurou. She says their names over and over again like a mantra. She says it so loudly—in her mind—that she does not hear him come in. She glances out to window, only to see it is midday.

"Mine?"

She looks up at him, and is surprised at the face that doesn't seem to show any disgust or hate. Had Chouji told him after all?

"I refuse to believe you could do something like that." His arms are crossed across his chest as he leans against the wall oppisite her, his expression serious. Ah, so Chouji _had_ told him. And . . . Shikamaru hadn't believed him? This shocks Temari. Chouji is Shikamaru's closest and dearest friend and advisor. Is Shikamaru's faith in her so great that even the opinion of his best friend cannot shake it?

He is the one person that can read her eyes, besides her two brothers. He must see the relief in them, because he grins suddenly, and nods. "I don't know how it happened, but Chouji must have made a mistake. I _know_ you wouldn't do something like that!" He chuckles as if the mere thought of it is ridiculous.

Temari feels slightly guilty, because it _had_ happened after all. This had caused Shikamaru to doubt Chouji, which seems to her to be nearly as bad.

She feels even worse because she finds herself shivering at the memory of being pressed against that tree and . . .defiled.

He sits down at the edge of her bed, and watches her seriously. She's begun to be able to read his face as well, even though he can express himself with words. But even now she cannot read his expression. "Mine, who are you?" he whispers, and reaches out. Her heart is beating, beating, beating, like a thousand drums calling out the warriors to march into war, into death.

These are bad omens. Yashamaru's hands are on her again. Except this time it's Shikamaru that has his hands on her, and they're on her face. His fingers are cold, like a corpse's hands. Her war-drum heart was calling for death after all, for his death-hands.

She closes her eyes as his cold fingers run themselves over her fact, his cheeks, her eyelids, her lips, like a lone traveler discovering the landscape of a new terrain. Her war-drum heart is no longer calling the soldiers to death, but for something _more_.

No. No more. Temari pulls her face away from the death-hands, and shakes away the thoughts. She had made her brothers a _promise_. She will not fall in love with a man while her task is still unfinished. That's what is happening, isn't it? Her heart is beating because she wants to love him. But she can't, she knows it.

His hands fall back onto his lap. "I think I love you, Mine. Naruto and Kiba say that I can't possibly even _know_ you. But I do. There are other ways to communicate than with words, aren't thre." He gets up, and walks out, closing the door behind him softly.

She denies the rain passage from her eyes, and the half-done sleeve remains dry under her hands.

* * *

Mine throws the kunai at him, and her aim is pretty good. But not good enough.

He dodges it easily, pulling to the right. Not too far, but just enough to dodge the incoming kunai—and the one she threw at the spot she had predetermined he would stand in.

He turns to look at her, sweating from the sun and the extraneous effort, but looking oddly happy. She's run out of kunai, though, and Shikamaru knows this. He grins at her, but instead of returning the smile, she runs up suddenly, a fan being revealed from . . . somewhere. Women's clothing is much too complicated for Shikamaru's understanding.

She's swiping at him with it. Only Mine would go as far as to use such an item as a weapon. As he retreats, he notices something_ odd_ about this particular fan. It's got something written on it . . .

He only has enough time to notice this much before he is blown against a nearby tree. It wasn't an especially hard blow, but it was enough to knock the air out of him for a moment. Well, this isn't an especially new event for Shikamaru, who is the master at getting beaten by the stronger warriors, but there _is_ something novel about this particular incident.

She hadn't even touched him.

When he looks up at her, she's towering over him, fan already slipped back into its hiding spot, and a smirk on her lips. Her eyes are telling him that she's beaten him, that if she could make a noise she would laugh arrogantly, and unfortunately he is inclined to agree. He grunts in pain as he pushes himself up, but he refuses her hand. He's not so sure how glad he is at the fact that he's been beaten to easily by a woman, and his pride isn't allowing him to let her pull him up.

But his pride is beaten back when she offers his arm to him. They _are_ quite a bit away from the castle, as it seems they strayed during their little scrimmage. He thinks his foot might even be sprained, and he says as much. She rolls her eyes, obviously thinking him quite the weakling, but still offers her arm. He takes it, and they walk back to the castle.

They're silent as they hike through the forest, but Shikamaru's mind is anything but. He knows what his people are saying about this woman, and the rumors of her being some kind of barbarian queen became more abundant when she openly challenged him one day, in front of all the warriors. She didn't say so out loud, but the motions she kept making with the kunai seemed to support that fact.

It's not just the fact she challenged him, because a woman who knows how to protect herself and her family isn't too rare a sight in the Leaf kingdom, but the fact that she nearly beat him is. Growing up, Hinata was probably the only girl near his age who ever could have stood a chance against Shikamaru, but she never dared. It would have been disrespectful to beat the future Hokage.

Now, though, after Sakura left the Leaf Kingdom for nearly three years, she could have probably beaten him, if it was merely strength against strength. But that's not the point.

She fought differently than what they were used to. They whispered that she had fought dirty, and maybe she had. Maybe she only knew how to fight with what she had. Maybe a few of the rumors are right and she _is_ a refugee from some violent war to the Far East or West. That might explain a few things.

But he has some idea where she's from. She's tan, although she was far darker when she first arrived, which hints to the fact that she lived somewhere very hot, nearly all the time. Either that, it would have needed to be summer, but when she arrived it was spring. So she must have lived somewhere that was hot in the spring.

There was only one nearby place that sounded plausible.

The Sand kingdom. He hasn't _told_ anyone, yet. He hasn't dared. If they knew where she was from, they would chase her off, beat her, perhaps even go as far as kill her, married to the Hokage or not (x).

* * *

Then it happens again. Yashamaru interferes. Shikamaru and Chouji promised to keep what had happened between the three of them, and so the rest of the castle didn't know of Temari's 'betrayal.' This time, though, there was no way they could miss it.

Chouji's corpse was a testament for what had happened. Temari's bloody hands were as well.

But Lady Mine could not speak, could not cry out that she had been _framed_, that Yashamaru had slit his throat, not her. Not her. And so she screams on the inside, screams and screams and screams, and the blood blood blood keeps pumping out of Chouji's fatal wound as he falls, and Yashamaru is gone.

And the feathers fall around her as she tries to push the blood back in. If she pushes hard enough maybe he won't be dead anymore. Kankurou and Gaara are pulling her away, they are trying, but she's fighting them, possibly for the first time in her life. Chouji _can't_ die.

He had treated her like a real Lady, instead of some girl that was raised alone in a tower. He treated her like an equal, like a Leaf woman. And now he's dead.

And now she's locked in, once again, not in her room, not in a tower, but this time it's in a dungeon. It's dirty here, and it smells of piss. She's always crying, it seems, in this dark, dank place, and she doesn't know whether its because of Chouji or her brothers or Shikamaru's stone cold face.

He had to believe she would never do that. Where was that faith he had for her? Had it dispersed at the sight of Chouji's blood on Temari's hands?

She was _so close_ to finishing her task, at last. More than two years she had slaved at those shirts, worked hard and harder, and now she didn't know where they were. She needs one sleeve, _one _sleeve, and then the shirts will be done, and she and her brothers can escape from here. It wouldn't matter then if the Leaf kingdom blamed her for Chouji's death, then, would it? She would have her brothers back, and that's all that matters.

Isn't it?

She hears the men pass, and they say things to her, ugly, _ugly_ words. They curse her, they threaten her. They tell her she's going to die soon, because that is what she deserves. One of them even comes into her cell and . . . it's like Yashamaru all over again, but too hard, too rough, too much. And she wants to scream, but she can't.

(x) He rips through her clothes, rips through her, but her mouth is shut tight, even as she wants desperately to open her mouth and scream. She tries to fight him off, but she can't. She's not strong as she thought she was, is she? Her arrogance got her nowhere. She cannot reach her fan.

He leaves her there. He calls her trash. He says she deserves this.

She doesn't make a sound.

_Never is a promise, and you can't afford to lie._


	4. Task

**Thank you, _misumi-san, Kazumi Tachikawa, Uzamaki Liliana, Intuition, WinterOfOurDiscontent, MisChibiOus_ for reviewing the last couple of chapters. I appreciate them!**

**Only one more chapter left after this one. I listened to Fiona Apple so much, she possessed me through her music, and forced me to insert them. Don't worry, they're italics, and rather easy to skip. They're supposed to describe Temari's feelings a bit. In this chapter (and once the others are revised) major characters are those with speaking parts, and minor are those merely mentioned. I might possibly correct this chapter at a later time.**

**I've also started a Hinata and Kiba story set in this same AU and timeline (past), based on Beauty and the Beast. It's only just beginning, and not yet posted. Hopefully some of the people that liked this story will like that one as well.**

**(x) means notes, which can be found below.**

Title**: Two Swans  
**Genre**: Fantasy/Romance  
**Characters**: major: Temari, Gaara, Kankurou, Shikamaru, Yashamaru, Naruto, Sasuke, Hinata, Kiba, Nara Yoshimo, Ino.  
minor: Chouji, Akimichi Chomaru, Yamanaka Inoichi, Nara Shikaka, Konohamaru, Moegi, Sakura, Neji, Lee, Tenten.  
**Relationships**: ShikaTema, minor SasuNaru, minor HinataKiba, possible minor InoChouji**

**Notes:**

**1. Nara Yoshimo is Shikamaru's mother.  
****2. Akimichi (Lord) Chomaru is Chouji's father. In the manga he was part of Nara Shikaku's team, and in this story was close friends with Shikaku (Shikamaru's father).  
****3. Yamanaka (Lord) Inoichi is Ino's father. In the manga, he was also part of Nara Shikaku's team, and in this story was close friends with Shikaku.  
****4. Nara Shikaku was the Hokage before Shikamaru, for those that didn't figure that out by now.  
****5. Shikamaru has some talent for magic (ninjutsu in anime/manga), and so he can see Temari's chakra aura (mentioned in last chapter), but not as much as Yashamaru, as so she picked it up more easily.

* * *

One of Shikamaru's men comes in to see her. She doesn't remember his name, nor does she really care to. As long as he doesn't touch her, she won't go mad.**

"Lady Mine? Is that really you?" Blondie Boy keeps _staring_ at her! Who does he think he is? Who does he think _she_ is? Some curious animal in a cage to be gazed at? Temari throws a pebble at him. She hopes it hits him in the eye.

"It's me, Naruto. Come on, I wasn't _that_ much of a background character!" Nope, she doesn't remember him. He growls, but doesn't push the subject. "Look, personally I don't think you did killed Chouji. Shikamaru's too smart to marry a murderer. But unless you _say_ something, we can't do anything about it."

"Shikamaru's always said that you are silent by choice." There's someone else in the room besides the short, blonde one? She squints and stares into the corner, but she still can't really see him. He's so dark to begin with, that she can not easily differentiate him from the shadows he's standing it.

"Sa-a-asuke," Blondie whines over his shoulder the shadow. "Stop being so _mysterious_. We need to be serious about this! She could die."

"What are you planning on doing, _force_ her to speak?" Sasuke steps away from the wall, and she can now make out his face. Yes, dark, brooding, and so absolutely, _untouchably _Naruto's.

"No! Let's just talk to her! She can probably understand us, at least." He turns back to her, his face pleading, and his eyes wide. She looks away. She cannot speak. Even if it spells her death, she will not give up on her brothers.

"Please, speak, Lady Mine. I don't like seeing you in this cell, it's doesn't _fit_ you!"

Sasuke snorts. "A dungeon doesn't fit _anyone_, idiot. That's the point."

"Shut up, Sasuke! This isn't the time for biting wit! I wanna save her _life,_ goddamn it." Naruto actually looks angry with Sasuke. Does he really want to save me that badly? Or is he just loyal to his people? Technically, I'm not one of his people, so what should I matter?

And what of Shikamaru? Why isn't _he_ down here, trying to save me, instead of this blonde buffoon and his lover?

Does he . . . really think I killed him?

Too many questions, Temari. Too many.

Just ignore these two men, and maybe they'll go away. Perhaps they'll realize she'll be fine, just as long as she's left alone.

All that pain, all that work, all for _nothing_. All for naught. All the held back screams and the sobs she shoved back down her throat. The hope she had seen in her brothers' eyes when they saw the unfinished shirts, hidden subtly in between the guilt and pain. All for naught.

"Talk, Lady Mine. Shikamaru's going to go mad. He is completely torn. On one hand, it is his wife, and on the other his best friend. You have to convince him that you did not do such a thing! Only your voice can do as much." She shakes her head, and throws another pebble in his direction.

"I still can't believe he's dead," Naruto murmurs, and backs away from her cell. It seems he has given up on trying to convince Temari to speak. Good. Perhaps he'll leave soon, and she won't have to think about Chouji anymore.

She has a good feeling that if it were light enough to really be able to see her hands, that they would still be stained with his blood. She holds back the tears, because she refuses to let these two men see her cry.

"He is, Naruto. He was a good man, and he did a great many things to earn himself the reputation he had. All we can do now is remember him." Sasuke reaches over and pulls Naruto in a one-armed embrace, and the blonde sighs.

"There's always vengeance."

"No. I know from _personal_ experience that that's no good." Their voices are getting fainter, fainter. Temari sinks back into a pitch-black depression.

* * *

Temari is finally getting used to the silence, to the dark, to the rancid smell when more visitors come down to her cell.

"Lady M-mine?" a quiet, hesitant voice whispers. She recognizes the voice immediately; it belongs to the calm Hinata. She had made Temari's wedding dress and on several occasions kept her company. She seems out of place here, in the dungeons were criminals lying waiting for death.

"She can't answer you, Hinata," a second voice reminds her, gently. Although Temari isn't as familiar with this voice as she is with Hinata's, she knows it is Kiba, nonetheless. Hinata doesn't like to be away from him, and although he shows it less openly, he doesn't like to let her out of his sight either.

"I know." She hears the sound of keys jangling, and her head perks up. Is she . . . letting Temari out? The door creaks loudly as Hinata opens it, and her slippers make a light padding sound on the stone floor. Temari manages to make out a shadowy figure approaching me. She pushes herself against the wall.

I don't want her to touch me, she thinks, desperately gripping the rough wall.

"Lady Mine?" she repeats, and Temari wishes she wasn't from the Hyuga witch clan. With those eyes it's impossible to hide from her, even in this darkness. Hinata's soon leaned over her, but Temari still can't make out the details on her face.

Without saying a word, Hinata places something on her lap. Temari feels the familiar prickle against her legs, and she grips the item tightly in her hands. That's a mistake, but the pain is worth it. Her nettle shirts are back in her possession. She wants to thank Hinata, to hug her, to shower her with praise, but she's silent.

"I know you wouldn't want to be separated from it for too long," Hinata murmurs soothingly, and places a tender hand on Temari's shoulder. Temari flinches and pulls away. The bruises are still there.

"Lady Mine, it's just me. You know me." She seems to be reaching over to touch Temari again, but before she can Temari jumps up, and rushes away from her. Kiba growls at her from the dungeon door, where he's standing watch in case she attempts to escape. They're not here to save her, then.

"They're going to kill you, Lady Mine. Shikamaru doesn't know whether or not you really killed Chouji. But Lady Yoshino (x) certainly thinks you did. Shikamaru drank too much at the dinner table and accidentally let slip how he thought you were most likely from the Sand kingdom. Because of that, of course, Lady Yoshino thinks the worst of you now, as do some others, especially Lords Chomaru (x) and Inoichi (x). They were so close to the late Hokage (x), after all . . . If they hadn't known you were from the Sand, there might have been a chance for you to only be exiled."

What? Temari thinks, still huddled against the wall, holding the two shirts. How had he figured out she was from the Sand? She had known he was clever but . . . just how intelligent was he?

And what did her being from the Sand kingdom have to do with _anything_? She had nothing to do with the former Hokage, and had barely even met Lords Chomaru and Inoichi. What grudge could they possibly have against her?

Temari looks up when she hears Hinata move towards the dungeon door again. She could probably force her way through the two of them, if she really wanted to. But then there would be guards and warriors in the castle itself, not to mention Shikamaru himself. She barely beat him one on one. She would not make it out alive, even if she were not hungry and tired from insomnia.

"I hope you don't have family waiting for you, Lady Mine," Kiba says, sounding almost apologetic. "You're never going to see them again, and the only part of _you_ they'll see is a corpse." Hinata doesn't cover up for him; she doesn't say a thing. Temari sighs. Hinata must agree with him, but doesn't have the courage to say it.

The worst thing is that Temari is afraid they may be right.

* * *

They're bringing up the pole, his people. This is an old, old custom, one he hadn't thought he would ever see actually occur in his lifetime.

They're going to burn his wife at stake.

They have her tied up between two warriors, two strong youths called Konohamaru and Moegi. She looks determined, undefeatable, even now. Is this just an act? She's standing there, her back straight as a bamboo stick, looking at him, only him, those damned things in her arms once more—who had brought them to her?

And he can read her eyes, now more than ever. Is it that aura that has suddenly surrounded her? She seems to be surrounded by green aura, one he has noticed on several of his closest companions (x), namely those with a knack for magic.

He regrets having said those things at the dinner table. He doesn't truly know if he believes Mine really murdered Chouji, even though all the proof points to her. Even so, his mother, his people, won't allow her to live. In the end, the people control the Hokage, not the other way around.

_But as the scenery grows, I see in different lights. The shades and shadows undulate in my perception. My feelings swell and stretch; I see from greater heights. I understand what I am still too proud to mention—to you._

It was announced that as soon as the sun begins to set they would light the fire. The sun was setting. Shikamaru is standing nearest the stake, his mother at his right and Lady Ino at his right. He turns to look at Ino. This has been especially hard on her, Shikamaru thinks sadly. She loved Chouji very much, and his loss was as much of a blow to her as it was to him.

She had never made her feels for the large man clear, but Shikamaru had always suspected she cared for him more than she let on. Either way, she had loved him and had shed a great many tears at his funeral.

"I am glad she is going to die," she hisses, glaring at Mine with passionate fury in her eyes. Smoldering hate seems to come off her in waves, and Shikamaru almost flinches.

"What if she didn't do it, Ino?" He asks his old friend.

She turns to him, her angry gaze now aimed at him. "The blood was on her hands! What more proof do you want, Shikamaru? You told us you were marrying this Mine for her protection, but I think you can't lie to me! I know you too well. You love her, Shikamaru. Don't let your feelings cloud your judgment. She killed your best friend, you can't _possibly_ feel compassion for her!"

_You'll say you understand, but you don't understand. You'll say you'd never give up seeing eye to eye. But never is a promise, and you can't afford to lie._

It is true, isn't it? He had fallen in love with Mine. He had even admitted it to her himself. Did he love her still, even with the chance that she had killed his best friend?

"Shikamaru," his mother puts in coldly, and both Ino and Shikamaru turn to look at her in surprise. "Lady Ino is right. She killed Chouji. And her people killed your father. You have a _duty_ to your people to protect them."

Four years since it had happened. The relationship between the Sand kingdom and the Leaf kingdom had been peaceful, and none had suspected foul play. So when several people from the Sand asked to stay at the castle to rest for a night, his father had agreed without hesitation.

Then, that night, a scream was heard from the dining room. The warriors guarding the castle that night came running, only to find their Hokage dead and the Sand visitors fleeing. They had managed to catch one, but it had not revealed anything. The woman had remained silent until the moment she died, which was soon after.

That must be a Sand trait, Shikamaru thinks morosely. Silence.

And if Mine had really killed Chouji, then that must be yet another Sand trait. Murder.

They are pulling Mine up on the pile of straw that surrounds the stake. She isn't fighting them, but she refuses to let go of the nettle shirts.

"Let her keep them," Shikamaru calls out to the two warriors, and they relent. Mine looks at him with eyes full of gratitude. He looks away.

You'll never touch - these things that I hold. The skin of my emotions lies beneath my own. You'll never hear the message I give. You'll say it looks as though I might give up this fight.

He'll never know now why she was silent. He'll never know why she hurt herself or why she had been hiding in trees when he had first found her that day two years before. Her secrets will burn with her in the flames.

The sun is setting.

"The sun has touched the horizon! Burn her! May she burn in _hell_!" He stares at his mother with look of surprise. He had never heard his mother speak in such a manner. It seemed so _crude_ of her. Her eyes were as angry as Ino's. As he glanced around at the people that were now surrounding the stake, he saw the same expression in most of their faces.

Naruto and Sasuke are donning similar expressions. They don't show a thing, but simply gaze at the scene playing out before them stoically. Hinata is gripping Kiba's arm tightly, and seems to be forcing herself to look, tears threatening to spill over. Neji is staring at Mine with an expression that looks like curiosity and disgust at the same time. Sakura is glaring openly at Mine, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. He couldn't find Lee or Tenten in the crowd.

Most of the warriors and a lot of his people had begun to chant, "Burn in hell, burn in hell," repeating his mother's words.

The torch was lowered to the straw.

Mine seems to finally be shocked into reality as she gazes down at the flames licking at her feet. Her eyes look scared, and she pushes herself as far from the fire as she can.

He hears several curious whispers around him, but Shikamaru ignores them, his eyes glued to Mine. He wants to see her alive as long as he can.

And so he doesn't notice the two huge birds come down from her sky, their feathers raining down upon the crowd. At least not until they are nearly at the burning stake. By the time they are right in front of the flames, they are completely human. One of them has dark brown hair, the other has red. Shikamaru watches as his warriors rush at them, drawing their swords and aiming their kunai.

The smaller boy turns on them, his eyes blazing with anger and mouth moving, crying spells and curses faster than Shikamaru can keep up with. His warriors lie defeated in mere seconds.

Meanwhile, the older one is trying to extinguish the fire, but failing.

Mine is unwrapping the shirts, her skirt beginning to catch fire, but her voice still as silent as ever. This pushes Shikamaru into action.

"Mine! Stop, stop!" He screams at his warriors, rushing towards to the stake, towards Mine, towards the fire. She looks up at him, her hands faltering slightly at her task.

_  
I don't know what to believe in, you don't know who I am. But never is a promise and I'll never need a lie._

And then something hits Shikamaru squarely in the stomach. The dark-haired man had thrown a stone at him. "Stay away from us, damn it!" The man cries, his eyes tearing from the smoke.

The flames are spreading.

Shikamaru watches numbly, helplessly, as the two strangers begin to change, their skin growing white and feathers appearing where there had once been skin. They were returning to their original forms. And the fire is still burning strong!

He has to quench the fire, he realizes desperately. He forces his mind to work, trying to think of a way to save her.

She's . . . she's throwing the shirts over the fire? Two shirts . . . and two swans. Shikamaru quickly puts two and two together, and runs to pick up the nettle items. He's in a panic, he doesn't see anything but those two shirts, the swans, Mine.

Put them on the birds, he thinks. Somehow this will save Mine! He knows it will. It has to. Because he knows there's no way he's going to blow out that fire otherwise. And then she's be . . .

He grabs the shirts, ignoring the pain as the hairs sink into his hands. The swans are moving towards him, and they seem to be caught up in the same thing he is, panic, move, quick, smell of burning flesh . . .

He pushes the things over the first one's head, and there's a flash, but he can't stop and pay attention to it, not when there's the other one . . . It's too small. The shirt isn't fitting. He put the big shirt on the smaller bird, he realizes. He pulls and pulls, determined to make it fit, to save Mine, somehow.

Fate was with him. It fit. And behind him a low, hoarse cry was heard, and a tornado hits.

* * *

**Wow. I think I was writing for more than an hour straight. I don't know if it was worth it xP**


	5. Deal

**I lied. This story changed at the last minute. I want some advice from my loverly reviewers. Question will be asked at the end because I don't want to give anything away. The next chapter will definitely be the last, though.**

**(x) means notes, which can be found below.**

Title**: Two Swan  
**Genre**: Fantasy/Romance  
**Characters**: major: Temari, Shikamaru, Kankurou, Yashamaru, Hinata. minor: Naruto, Sasuke, Kurenai, Kazekage, Kiba  
**Relationships**: ShikaTema,**

**Notes:**

**1. Huyga clan did some pretty ugly things to the Inuzuka tribe, which I'm going to delve into in another story. Just know that this is what Shikamaru means by this statement.  
****2. He was nearly twenty when Yashamaru changed him into a swan.  
****3. Curse supposed to emphasize his anger. They don't use swear words lightly.

* * *

**

"It's strange, actually hearing you speak," Shikamaru says slowly, unsure what to really say now that she can respond with words.

"How do you think it feels for me? I haven't spoke a word in more than two years." It's been several days since she was nearly burned at stake, but her leg wounds were much better. They would be scarred for the rest of her life, but she would be able to walk, at least, if not run.

"Yes, well . . . " The two of them are sitting by the grove; exchanging the first spoken conversation they've been able to have on their own.

"I'm leaving, tomorrow, Shikamaru. I can't afford to stay here any longer." Either that, or she doesn't want to. Shikamaru doesn't blame her. This people, even after hearing her state her innocence, and the true perpetrator of the crime, are unsure about whether or not believe her. The Sand had done them a grievance blow four years prior, and they were not about to forgive them just yet.

His warriors refused to allow Mi—_Temari's _brothers to remain in the same room with them, much less _dine _with them, or converse with them. Only Hinata, Sasuke and Naruto would go out of their way to speak with Temari. His own mother completely ignored all three of the Sand visitors, even after Shikamaru explicitly told her to treat them with respect.

Ino had gone as far as to leave Konohagakure for good. She had come to see him, a small pack on her bag, and Sakura at her side. Ino informed him of their decision to take a trip, possibly pay a visit to the Inuzuka tribe deep in woods. Ever since Konohagakure had signed the peace treaty with them, despite their enmity with the Hyuga clan, they had been exchanging guests. Kiba had even come to live here, although that was undeniably more for Hinata than for the good relationship between his tribe and Konohagakure.

Even so, Ino and Sakura had never shown any interest in leaving the castle at all, much less go and visit the Inuzuka castle—which Shikamaru had heard them call 'Flea Paradise' on several occasions when Kiba was out of earshot. Shikamaru did not need to be a genius to figure out they were leaving because of Temari. Because of him.

In the time span of a couple of weeks, Shikamaru had lost his two best friends. Was Temari worth it?

And this . . . Yashamaru. He had heard rumors, of course, of the chaos and anarchy occurring in Sunagakure. But he hadn't dared to send any of his warriors near there, lest they let their anger grab hold and go on a mass killing spree. Now, it seems, Temari has given him the answer. If a witch who concerns herself with only her own interests took control of the Sand kingdom, no wonder there was anarchy.

"Well, that's . . . fine with me." It's not, and Shikamaru is pretty sure that she knows this. He wants to tell her his feelings haven't changed, despite all the trouble they've been though. He wants to tell her a lot of things, about how torn up he really is about Chouji's death and Ino's departure, about the feeling he has that her brothers don't like him.

But he can't.

"I don't believe you'll find it difficult after this to annul our marriage," Temari continues, as if she's speaking about the weather or the eating habits of squirrels. There is no remorse in her tone, at all. Shikamaru wants to cry out that he doesn't want to annul anything. He wants her to say, and he wants his people to get over the fact that she is from the Sand kingdom. _She_ didn't kill his father. Was he to blame for the cruel things the Hyuga had done (x), years ago?

Temari turned her head to the side suddenly, her hair facing him now, instead of those green eyes. "Gaara is calling me. We'll talk later." She takes his hand in her hers for second, giving him a half-hearted smile and her hand presses his encouragingly. Then she's off, and he remembers he has to see the newest influx of young warriors this morning.

Instead of seeing their proud faces staring in hopes that he'll accept them into the tough warriors they've been dreaming of joining for years, he sees that half-hearted smile of hers, the only proof he has that she isn't completely happy about how things are working out.

* * *

"And what of _her_, Temari? What of her?" Kankurou is leaning against the wall. The two siblings are standing behind the surplus shed. There weren't a lot of people coming or going, and that is why Temari had chosen this place to have this talk. They are leaving the next, and she's pretending to be glad, to be homesick from two years away from her homeland, but her heart hurts.

And Kankurou is her brother after all, the person who practically raised her when she lived in the tower. He knows her better than anyone, and knows when she's hurting.

And so she admitted it, rather reluctantly. She's having second thoughts. Shikamaru's never had many feelings to cover up, and so he doesn't know how. She can see right through him and she knows he wants her to stay, even though he can't bring himself to open his mouth and actually say those words.

But Kankurou's smart, a lot smarter than a lot of people give him credit for. Either that, or he sees past himself and into the big picture more than most people do.

"Yashamaru's not gone. She's ruining out kingdom, Temari! I won't let her get away with it! I'm due to be Kazekage. I'm a good twenty-one (x) years old now, and I'll fight our father if I have to! I actually care about our people, and I can't see Yashamaru doing them much good. Look what she did to _us_!" Kankurou's angry, and he keeps slamming his fist against the shed back wall to make his point. He wasn't so angry back in the tower.

She realizes now that changes have occurred. She is no longer Kankurou's sheltered little sister, while he is no longer her calm, composed brother. And Gaara, back in the castle, now has a swan's wing instead of an arm.

"I don't think we should leave Gaara alone for so long . . . he's only twelve, after all, and the people there don't accept him with the whole. . . " Temari says this gently, not wanting to bother her brother in this moment of anger.

"With the fact he has a wing now instead of an arm? Who's fault is _that_, now? Maybe if you had spent more time on what you said you would do instead of screwing with that damned Hokage, he would have his _arm_ and now another horrid memory of living as a fucking (x) bird!"

These words sting. Partly because her brother is saying them, and partly because she almost believes them. He's right. She had fooled around and wasted too much time on Shikamaru and on the others, so caught up in their web of friendliness that she sometimes neglected her task. It's her fault that Gaara's suffering, her fault that Yashamaru murdered Chouji, her fault that Ladies Ino and Sakura left the castle.

"Temari . . . I'm sorry, I didn't _mean_ that . . ." The look in her brother's eyes has softened, and he reaches out to her. She pulls away, the sobs threatening to suffocate her. She just needs to get away from Kankurou, from his apologetic words, because she doesn't want to be convinced on how this is her fault, when it's so _clear_ it is. So very clear.

She runs as best she can, her legs still not completely healed from the fire, and runs with her odd gait, and is glad there is so much space in this place in this place where she can exhaust herself. Into the forest, her feet pull her, into the shadows, and she feels the branches scratching at her exposed skin, her arms and her legs, but what does she care? This is her own personal atonement.

"Oh, young one. How sad you look." Temari stops, and glances around desperately. That voice . . . it send _chills_ up her spine . . . "It's me, Temari. Yashamaru, your dearest step-mother." Up in the trees, to her right. Temari reaches underneath her skin for her—

"Ah!" She screams echoes through the trees, but she's too far away for anyone from the castle to hear her. Temari looks at her hand to find a blade skimmed the back of her palm.

"No, Temari. You're good, but you're not that good. I can kill her three different ways before you can bring out that fan." Temari straights and looks straight at the woman. She's lounging about lazily on a tree branch, her legs exposed scandalously, and her neckline dangerously low. A thin, hungry fox grin slowly slides onto her face.

"I want to make you a deal, daughter."

Temari spits on the ground next to her, face contorted by her anger. "I'm not your damn _daughter_."

"We'll see," Yashamaru replies vaguely, slipping down from the tree in one graceful movement, her robes falling back into their proper places as she lands. "Now, Temari, don't get prematurely angry. Like I said, I have a deal to make with you. And I don't think it will be a too bad for you, this deal."

Suddenly, she right next to Temari, her face buried in her neck. This nearness . . . it unnerves Temari. She wants this feeling gone, and she remembers rough, rough hands, so unlike Shikamaru's and even the hands of the male Yashamaru had become. Temari wants to push her away, but finds she can't. She doesn't have control over her own body anymore. "Get _away_ from me!" She manages to mumble.

"Oh, but you smell_ delicious_. Your chakra smells delicious. You've got some talent, Temari. I don't want it to go to waste." Temari feels breathe against her neck, but at the last moment Yashamaru pulls away. "No, talk first." Temari still can't move and she can't block out what Yashamaru's saying.

"Temari, I'll be quite _candid_. You have a great deal of unused power in you. Your loyalty, your determination, the pain of those nettles and of the silence of two years, they brought that out. You ask some of the people in that castle if they see something around you and they'll say they do. If you say in the Sand kingdom, or even here, your talent will only be wasted at the side of your Kazekage brother or Hokage husband and your people. But come with me, let me train you, and I promise that you will come out strong. No one will ever hurt you again.

"And you're hurting _now,_ aren't you darling?" She croons, her face looming closer. She smells like roses, like flowers, which are death and life, and never-ending. "It's not your fault. _You_ were the one who was in pain, and who held back those screams for _two_ years. You sacrificed yourself for them, and they pin _one_ little mistake on you?

"And who killed the fat man? Me, not you. The blood is on my hands." She's hold Temari, and although she knows Yashamaru isn't her mother, and she knows she hates Yashamaru for what she did to Temari's brothers, and to Temari, herself, and to Chouji, and yet, she feels at ease. Her mother never held her, or at least not that she remembers.

Someone is holding Temari. That is enough to shock her into torpidity. "Baby, I'll take care of you. You love your brother, but he can't be a parent. I know I can't be a good one either, but I'll take care of you, like Kankurou never could. Just come with me. . ."

"You're power hungry, trying to take over the Sand kingdom . . . "

She laughs, a slight and amused sound. "I haven't been in the Sand kingdom in more than a year, Temari. I was raised in the woods, alone with my mother. It was a lot like your tower, I suppose. My mother taught me magic, and she treated me well. Or as well as she knew how. When your father fell into her trapspell, she wasn't planning on it being the Kazekage. If he had been a mere stableboy, we would have done the same.

"It was our plan, you see. I would get free, and then tie her soul to a babe. And we would be free of those woods, and we could be together! I just wanted a mother that wasn't almost engulfed by the task of freeing herself from the woods where she was caged, years and years ago." Temari finds herself interested, in spite of herself.

"How was she trapped in the forest to begin with?"

Yashamaru doesn't answer. Instead, she pulls her down, until the two of them are sitting side by side. Temari realizes she isn't controlled by Yashamaru's magic anymore, but she isn't fighting her. She's . . . engrossed. Maybe Yashamaru . . .

"She never told me. But she's my mother. Even . . . even if she was trapped there for a reason, I have to help her. That's why . . . I planted her in your brother."

"You did what?" Temari's up, and she's not under Yashamaru's mindspell anymore. Why was she even listening to this witch?

But she knew the answer, even them. She couldn't help but feel a tie to this woman, so different from the one she had seen slay Chouji, and place that spell on her brothers. Yet, they was one and the same, the girl in the forest and the murderer.

"My mother is in your littlest brother, Temari. That's another part of our deal. You come with me, become my apprentice and my companion, and I'll extract her. If not, well, you don't know how to get rid of my mother." Yashamaru's standing in front of her, blonde and powerful and beautiful even in these shadows.

Temari sees the thick aura of violet, like lightening, surround her, and it pulsates strength like nothing Temari has even seen before. This is what this woman is offering her. This, and freedom for her younger brother. And love, or something close enough like it. Appreciation at least.

Kankurou will save the Sand kingdom, and Shikamaru will marry Ino when she returns, just as Chouji prophesized. And she will get stronger, and return, and be able to _help_ people. Even though Yashamaru killed Chouji, and there is no atonement for that, Temari could make for it with all the good she will do with the powers invested in her.

"Give me until I leave, tomorrow." Closing her eyes, and massaging her temples against the powerful rush of pain to her head, Temari sighs. Until tomorrow to make a decision. When she opens her eyes again, Yashamaru is gone. Temari turns, and heads back to her last night at the castle she had come to call home.

* * *

"L-Lady Mine! You . . . you can not be seriously considering this, can you?" Hinata is wringing her hands, dressed in a lovely light blue dress that carefully sets off her figure without making it too extravagant at the same time.

Meanwhile, Temari is sitting across from her, in another chair. She's wearing a simple, trite dress that the Leaf people are very familiar with. It's brown, and ragged, but soft and she feels comfortable in it. "Why shouldn't I? I can see it; you're surrounded by your own aura of power. It's not nearly as strong as Yashamaru's, but it's there. Someone trained _you_, didn't they?"

Hinata flushes, but that's far from unusual. "My father, a bit, and my teacher, Kurenai. But, they . . . never killed a—no. _Kurenai_ never killed anyone. That's another reason I never speak to my father."

"You never speak to your father? But he's the leader of the Hyuga witch clan, while you're his eldest daughter! You're going to be the leader one day. How can you not speak to him?" Temari has always been intrigued by the complex relationship Hinata has with the people around her. She's Kiba's lover, and she loves him, just as he does her. She's Hyuga Hiashi's eldest daughter and heir, but yet Temari can truthfully say she has never seen either of them exchange words. She seems to respect Naruto a great deal, but avoids him whenever he's in the company of Sasuke. Needless to say, Hinata and Naruto don't have a lot of time to speak.

"We don't . . . agree on many things."

"Like Kiba?"

The glance that Hinata gives Temari is the closest she has ever seen the quiet woman get to annoyance. "What are you going to do about this, Lady Mine?"

"I . . I don't know."

"Why don't you ask your brothers or . . .or Shikamaru on advice on this? It effects them more than it does me, you know." She gets up from her spot on the edge of her bed, and goes through her dresser, rummaging through her clothing, her back to Temari.

"I know what they will say. Shikamaru was Chouji's best friend, and he will never forgive her for that. Gaara and Kankurou have both suffered greatly because of her, and they, too, won't forgive her lightly—"

"You suffered, too, Lady Mine," Hinata interjects.

"By choice. I could have chosen to not help my brothers and my hands and legs would not be scarred. But . . . I came to you, because I needed an unbiased opinion, and you see like the type of person I can trust to keep this between the two of us." Temari pauses, allowing Hinata to speak. She doesn't for quite a while.

"Mine . . . if you feel you can do right by this, then do so. I . . . I just want you to remember that Yashamaru is dangerous. She may not mean what she says. And you cannot rule out the creature in your youngest brother. If the choice were mine, and it was Hanabi at stake here . . . I would probably go with Yashamaru." She pulls something out of her dresser, and approaches Temari slowly.

She reaches and takes Temari's hand, opening it slowly, palm up. With her other hand, Hinata places a thin necklace with a charm hanging from it onto her palm. "Take this, Lady Mine. It's my good luck charm. Kiba gave it to me, long ago. He may notice its absence, but I fear you need it more." With a chaste kiss on the cheek, Hinata leads Temari out of the room and bids her goodnight.

* * *

**So, here's the question: Should Temari join Yashamaru, or not? I will take your ideas as suggestions, so I don't make any promises. But I'm unsure as to what direction to take this to. Thank you for reading chapter five of this story, and thank you in advance for reviewing (if you do xP)**


	6. Happiness?

**Okay, here's the general plan. Majority of peoplewere for not breaking up Shikamaru and Temari, but I'm interested by the idea of Temari joining Yashamaru. So, I'm taking Uzamaki Liliana's advice, and making an alternative ending. Since most of you seem to like the 'happier' ending (haha) I'll post that first. Then for those of you that wouldn't mind Temari joining Yashamaru, you can read the second one. For some of you, then, this will be the last chapter. I hope it was an enjoyable read, and thank you for reviewing/reading.**

**Thank you, **Uzamaki Liliana, Intuition, MisChibiOus, bakusensei, QueenOfTheShadowFangs, fightingdreamerccc, **and** WinterOfOurDiscontent **for reviewing from chapter four on. Even _more_ love to those that suggested what path Temari should take.**

**By the way, the fact that Temari isn't leaving with Yashamaru doesn't mean that there's a happy ending. There may be, there may not be.**

**(x) means notes, which can be found below.**

Title: **Two Swans  
**Genre: **Fantasy/Romance  
**Characters: **major: Temari, Gaara, Kankurou, Hinata, Shikamaru, Yashamaru, Ino minor: Naruto, random ruffians  
**Relationships: **ShikaTema**

Notes:

**1. Another bit of first person story telling. I don't think it's too hard to figure out who it is.  
****2. In the Sand kingdom, they don't trust magic very much. It's a very deep-rooted superstition that magic corrupts.

* * *

**

I'm (x) uncomfortable on this horse. I've never ridden a horse before.

My wing itches. I want to scratch it, but I'm not about to let go of this horse. I don't think it likes me very much.

Temari is late. Whenever I see her I feel a light bubbling feeling rise in my chest in spite of myself. Even at twelve, I still think she's lovely. But, I notice things lately. For example, the deep circles around her eyes, nowhere near _mine_, of course, but there nonetheless. Her hands, which she ruined because of me; her limp, also because of me; the smile she forces.

I want her to smile at me for real.

Kankurou's getting nervous, too. He hasn't told me how worried he is about her, but I know. He isn't sure whether or not Temari will even come back home with us. She's gotten attached to this place, attached to these people, attached to the Hokage.

I must admit, he's been kind to us. Even after the Sand assassination of the prior Hokage, he accepts us with compassion and without holding a grudge. It's a good guy, and I wouldn't be against Temari staying here, as long as he is Hokage.

But the Sand kingdom _needs_ her. I don't know how, or why, but it does. It needs someone as determined and loyal as she is. It needs a hero to bring hope and admiration—two things lacking in our kingdom—back to the people.

Finally, I see her approach, her bag slung over her shoulder, and one of the Ladies at her side. They're speaking in quiet voices, and Temari looks sad. I don't want her to be _sad_.

"Temari!" I cry, motioning her over. She looks at me and flashes me another one of those fake smiles. I want to throw something at her.

"Okay, brothers. I'm ready." She takes the reins of the horse next to mine, and climbs up with some trouble. I hear her curse under her breath as she tries to position herself comfortably on the mare.

"Isn't your husband going to come and say his farewell?" I don't know if I like Kankurou's tone as he says that. I get the feeling that Kankurou doesn't like the Hokage despite the good treatment we've gotten at Konohagakure. Sometimes my brother is too complicated.

"Shikamaru is the Hokage. I doubt he has the time to spare to say farewell to a mere _friend_," Temari replies in an icy tone. Then she turns to the Lady, and smiles what looks like real smile, though sad. I don't like the fact that Temari can smile at this _woman_, but not at her own brother. "Farewell, Hyuga Hinata. I'll take care of that good luck charm for you."

Lady Hinata is crying opening, wiping her eyes gently with her sleeve. "Farewell, Lady Mine. I'll miss you. As well Shikamaru, though he has not come here to say so himself."

"Well, tell him . . . I . . . "

"Shush, Lady Mine. I'll tell him." Lady Hinata smiles through her tears, and the three of us set off. I have a feeling Temari's crying as well, but she's leading to two of us, and we can't see her face.

* * *

For some reason, Yashamaru had not appeared when Temari was leaving with her brothers. Temari didn't know why, but she did not dare hope that Yashamaru had forgotten Temari's promise to think about their deal. 

Temari cannot say that she's not tempted but . . . she cannot see herself leaving her brothers, leaving her kingdom for simply power. Even if with the power she can save others . . . Temari does not know the future, and she cannot possibly tell what kind of effects the power could have on her. She does not want to risk it.

And yet there is Gaara. Now that she knows that Yashamaru's mother in there with her little brother . . . she's rather worried. How long will it be before Gaara can no longer keep that woman out? Will he be been drowned by the wave of that woman's power?

She wants to ask her little brother about it, but how can she bring it up. _Well, hello Gaara. Have you felt yourself being taken over slowly by a witch? No? Well, if you do, just let me know._ It sounded ridiculous in her head, and it would sound worse out loud.

"Hello, weary travelers. Forgive the sudden intrusion, but I have a small matter to discuss with your _dear_ sister." It's her. Temari turns her head around, and indeed, there she is, standing behind Kankurou's horse. Before she can tell her siblings to allow the two of them a moment of privacy, Kankurou's off his horse, and drawing a sword he had been allowed to keep thanks to Naruto.

"Get away from us, Yashamaru, before you force me to sever your head from your body!" Temari slides off her own horse, and rushes up to her where her brother in confronting the witch.

"Stop it, Kankurou! She'll kill you before you can take another step!" She steps in front of him, lowering the blade with one hand. "I owe her an audience, Kankurou. Just let us speak for a few minutes, and then I'll return, safe and sound and in one piece." She hopes she's saying this in a convincing tone, because she isn't too sure herself.

"Just why do you owe her _anything_, Temari?" Kankurou is angry again, but Temari is not going to back down. If anything, _he_ owes _her_ something. At least, he owes her a little bit of trust.

"Kankurou, I am not _asking_ you. I am _telling _you that I will speak in private with Yashamaru, and then I will return. You can be content with that, or you can be against it. But I am going to do it, nonetheless." With that said and done, she pivots around and heads towards Yashamaru.

Thankfully, neither Kankurou, nor Gaara follow her, and she takes Yashamaru aside.

"So, darling, what's your decision?"

Temari shakes her head gently. "I cannot, Yashamaru. My brothers and my kingdom _need_ me."

"And what about me? How do you know _I_ don't need you?" Yashamaru sounds half-teasing and half-serious.

"You killed Chouji and cursed my brothers. I don't care whether or not you need me." Temari likes how her voice comes out cold and uncaring. It seems she's changed too. She learned how to be stoic and cold and mean throughout these two years. It's a useful talent.

"Well, how about Gaara? What will happen when my mother's tired of being subverted by a mere child? What will you do then?" Yashamaru sounds spiteful and bitter, and Temari is glad. Now she feels a little inkling of what Temari has been going through these years.

Temari is a little saddened, though, by the fact she now gets pleasure out of someone's pain. Has she become so much like Yashamaru and all the other people she despises?

"Well, then, Temari, dear. If that is your decision, this is the last time we will meet again, I think." Temari expects her to move away, perhaps run off in a flash. Instead, she leans over at places a soft kiss on her cheek. "

I don't think I would have made a very good mother-figure, anyway."

And _then_, she's gone, leaving Temari with a tingling sensation on her cheek, where she presses her fingers lightly. She's surprised the witch left without a single harrying word. In fact, she's slightly disappointed. She had almost been looking forward to telling someone off.

She walks back to her brothers, where they both greet her with questioning looks. She knows quite well they want answers, but she isn't prepared to give them. They won't be able to comprehend how she could even _consider_ Yashamaru's preposition.

After a long ride back to the Sand kingdom in relative silence, they finally arrive at the kingdom's border. Unfortunately, there to greet them are a group of ruffians, all armed to the teeth with weaponry that looks effective, if not especially in good condition. They ask them their names, but once they do, the ruffians denounce them as liars.

Why would their long-dead leader's children return to their homeland after more than two years away? It had been rumored that they, too, had been killed, though no bodies had ever been found.

Kankurou tries reasoning with them, but they threaten to kill the three of them roughly if they speak again. Temari is inwardly glad that these men have crossed their path. Now she can get out all this excess energy she feels.

Slipping out her fan, she approaches the men resolutely. Although they wave their kunai, knives, and other devices at her, she ignores them. With a swipe of her fan, a man goes flying. After a short glare from her, the remaining men begin backing away, slowly.

"How did you do that?" Gaara asks, curious and leaning forward dangerously on his horse to get a closer look at his sister. Before Gaara and Kankurou can get a good look at her fan, though, she's already put it away, and mounting her horse once more.

"A friend gave it to me," she replies stonily, forcing her horse to begin trotting in the direction they're heading once again. Before she can get very far, Kankurou pulls his own steed in front of her path.

"Have you been studying _witchcraft_?" His voice is accusing, and Temari dislikes his tone.

"Even if I were, I fail to see what it has to do with _you_." She attempts to move around him, but Kankurou's not about to let this pass.

"It has everything to do with me! Magic corrupts (x)! Are you planning on becoming another Yashamaru?" Instead of answering Temari pulls her horse around Kankurou's. He gives up the fight—for the moment, at least—and they continue on their way to Sunagakure.

* * *

And life goes on, as it must. The three Sand siblings return home, and though the chaotic city of their youth greets them with far less than open arms, they are resilient. They find the land they love ravaged nearly beyond repair, and their father long dead. Yashamaru ruled—if you could call locking yourself in a castle _ruling_—for only a short time before she abandoned Sunagakure to anarchy. 

Kankurou takes his place as Kazekage, and tries his best. In the end, though he's barely twenty, and the former vitality of the Sand kingdom will not soon return. Fortunately, they have the alliance with Leaf kingdom. After all, Temari _was_ married to the Hokage, and that has to count for something.

And what of Yashamaru's mother? As it turns out, he stopped hearing her voice after returning to his human form once again, but when they brought him to a residential witch, she assured them that she was still inside there, somewhere. She also told them that the woman's soul was trapped somewhere, and couldn't get out.

There was only one logical place where she could be. Gaara's swan wing. Temari doesn't see how to solve to the dilemma, but her two brothers immediately seem to agree about what must be done.

Gaara has his swan wing amputated. It was hard, in the beginning, to get used to having only one arm, as one would suppose. But Gaara was determined, to say the least, and life went on once more.

Kankurou and Temari never regain the relationship they had had those days when Temari lived carefree in the tower, and when Kankurou was still relatively innocent. But still, Kankurou knows her better than anyone . . . except maybe Shikamaru.

It is three years before Temari sees the Leaf kingdom again.

She's in the middle of a training session with five young trainees when Gaara appears behind her. She knows it's him because the young people get a sort of frightened look in their eyes, and they shut their damn mouths for once.

"Yes, Gaara?" She asks, trying to sound annoyed at having been interrupted, when in reality, she couldn't be happier to see him.

"Kankurou wants to see us." He doesn't need to say anything more; Temari immediately knows that Gaara expects it to be good news. Without a bit of gaiety in her expression, she turns to the group in front of her. "Study your attacks . . . the way I showed you." With that she swaggers off with her younger sibling.

Kankurou explains the dilemma to the two of them quickly and efficiently. The ambassador from Konohagakure is feeling ill, and some issues are in need of discussion before the winter comes and travel becomes more difficult. He wants the two of them go and discuss matter with the Hokage.

He doesn't say it, but Temari knows that he's doing this to her as a small favor. She's tried and tried to find someone, _anyone_, to complete her, but they've all bored her to pieces. She's come to the conclusion that she's better on her own.

So Kankurou thinks she still harbors feelings for her former husband? Temari wonders this herself. Can feelings survive so much distance and time spent apart? Even if hers can, what proof is there that Shikamaru hasn't married another by now . . . even Ino?

So Gaara and Temari leave Sunagakure, and journey for several days to reach the castle of Konohagakure. It's as alive and well as Temari remembers, even in mid-fall. It seems as if these past three years have no occurred, and she turned back that day she left, for something she forgot.

"Lady Mine?" A soft, surprised voice calls out from behind her. Temari pivots around only to find herself face-to-face with Yamanaki Ino.

"Hello. So we meet again, Ino." She gives her a half-hearted smile, despite the bad feeling she is getting in her stomach.

"Are you . . . here to see Shika?" Ino is beginning to sound like the girl Temari remembers. The bossy tone is returning to her voice.

"No. Your envoy seems to have picked a virus, or something of the sort. My brother and I are here to discussion some topics of importance with the Hokage," Temari replies curtly, not wishing to say more than she must. She does not feel like being friendly to Ino.

"Ah, so you _are_ here to see Shika. Well, you took your damn time, is all I have to say." With this said, Ino stalks off. Was there a hidden meaning in that?

"He _did_ break off your marriage . . . didn't he?" Gaara whispers to Temari uncertainly. Instead of responding, she leads him towards the castle.

Now . . . if she remembers correctly, which she thinks she does, the Hokage's room is . . . about . . . here.

Knock.

"Come in." His voice has gotten deeper, she notes, and blushes slightly at the thoughts that follow. Opening the door carefully, she glances in.

There he is, sitting behind a large desk, his back turned to the door. The huge window behind him is wide open, and he's gazing out, obviously not caring who knows that he's not doing any work.

"You're still a lazy prick, I'm guessing, then?" She says this in a teasing tone, with a small grin sliding onto her face despite herself.

He jumps up almost immediately, looking almost guilty. Then he sees who the speaker is, and he blushes fiercely. It looks odd on him, now, this blush. It makes her feel like the two of them are teenagers again.

"Oh . . . gods, I thought you were my mother. Your . . . tone. I should have realized, though. My mother never calls me anything as tame as _prick_." He gives her and her brother a nice, wide smile, and offers them each a chair. They relent thankfully, glad for the respite from their trip.

"Well, Temari. Gaara. It's been what. . . four years, now?"

"Three," Gaara corrects politely.

"Yes, of course. Three years." Even though he's speaking to Gaara, though, his eyes are trained on Temari. She feels his gaze on her, but she refused to give him eye contact.

"Well, there are several disputes that our brother wishes us to speak to you ab—" Temari begins, her tone professional and quite serious. She's ready to get down to business.

"Gaara, if you don't mind, I'd like a moment to speak to your sister in private." Glancing up at him in surprise, he smiles weakly. "If she doesn't mind, of course."

Gaara quickly scrambles out of his seat. "Yes, of course. Of course." Once they are alone, Temari turns on him.

"I'm here on _business_, Shikamaru," she says angrily, crossing her arms across her chest.

He sighs and leans back into his chair lazily, yawning directly afterwards. "Of course. But don't tell me you aren't glad to be back. And I hope that you're at least a little bit glad to see _me._"

"I don't enjoy _repeating_ myself, Shikamaru." Temari doesn't know why she's being so angry, just as she doesn't know why Shikamaru is being so tranquil about this whole thing. Well, what does she expect? For him to pounce at her in his lust? She would probably push him away, even if he did.

"Look, Temari, it's been three years. I've missed you; won't you give me the slightest bit of _pleasure_ before you're gone again, for who knows how long?" Now, finally that pained look is out of his eyes, but Temari doesn't feel better. She knows what he means by pleasure, but . . .

"You want _pleasure_, then, do you?" With a impish grin on her face, she decides to go _over_ and not around. Climbing onto the desk on all fours, she leans her face in close to his. Before he can change his expression from _complete shock_, to some bored one, she goes in for the kill.

She realizes . . . she's never kissed him before. The respectful peck he gave her the day of their wedding doesn't count. She barely remembers more than a brush of skin and a deep blush in her cheeks. But this kiss is completely different. For one, it lasts more than a split second. Oh, quite a bit more.

She vaguely feels his hands on her shoulders, trying to pull her closer. Even though the sensations that his tongue is giving her are driving her insane, her neck is beginning to acquire a crick. Reluctantly, she pulls away. Sitting down on his desk with her knees folded under her, she stares him. He looks like she feels, out of breath and in need of more.

"That . . . that wasn't what I was talking about, Temari," he mutters indistinctly, his eyes still looking glazed even though he's gazing right at her.

She pouts teasingly. "Are you saying you won't like to repeat the experience?" Instead of responding, he lifts himself off from his chair and joins her on the desk.

It doesn't take too long for him to lying over her, and the two of them are making noises they've never made before. Neither of them remembers or cares about the fact that they aren't along in the world and the walls aren't soundproof. Temari, taking a brief break from their hectic kisses for each word, wants to ask him something before she does something she'll regret.

"Shika—are—you—_oooh_—married—to—Ino?" As soon as these words escape her lips, she feels Shikamaru raise himself off her the slightest bit.

"You've been doing this with the possiblilty in your mind that I'm married to someone else? What if I said I was?" His eyes look a little angry, and Temari can't help but feel ashamed for irritating him.

"You don't seem like the cheating type," she says quickly, making an attempt to cover for herself.

"You're right . . . it's too troublesome." This time, he's lifting himself completely, and she doesn't like the cold feeling it gives her.

"What's wrong? Did I . . . do something wrong?" She sits up, and looks at him worryingly as he straightens his clothing. "No one heard us, right?" She continues, sounding a little worried as she glances back at the door. "Would they mind? I mean, we're not _married_ anymore, right?"

Shikamaru gives her an odd look for a moment, before taking his mussed ponytail down momentarily to redo it. What is _that_ supposed to mean?

"You _did_ annul our marriage, right? I mean, how did you even know we were ever going to see each other again? Your people would accept an absent queen?" She wants to leave the desk and force him to look her in the eyes, but she doesn't want to give up the hope that he'll join her again.

"I knew you'd come back," he replies simply, pushing his hair up neatly and tying it efficiently with a hair tie.

She doesn't know what to answer. After all, she _had_ come back, hadn't she? But not to stay forever. Her people came first, in the end.

"Kiss me again, Shikamaru," is the only comeback she can come up with, and even that comes out more pathetic than it sounded in her head.

"I can't." His back is turned to her, and he's facing the window once more. The sun is going down and the sky is alight with shades of pink and purple and blue and white. It's a beautiful effect, never seen in the dry Sand kingdom. Usually it's enough to silence her with awe, but not today.

"Why not? I . . . I didn't doing anything wrong, did I?" She knows she asked this before, but he hadn't answered her, and now she's more nervous than before.

Suddenly, he spins around to glare at her. "Look, Temari, if I kiss you again, I won't be able to control myself. I refuse to make love to my wife on a desk." The angry flush he had on his face to begin with is made a deeper red as soon as he says this. Looking away, he mutters under his breath, "God, you're so _troublesome_."

Smiling gently, she slides off the desk at last, and wraps her arms around his waist from behind. In a low whisper, she says, "Well, then, why don't we go somewhere more comfortable?"

* * *

And they lived happily ever after. The young girl, her husband and her seven brothers that is. 

Temari, Shikamaru, Gaara and Kankurou on the other hand . . .

Temari never truly knows what to call home, in the end. She goes back and forth from the two kingdoms until her life's end. The scars of her youth are still physically burnt onto her body in the burn marks on her legs and thick, knobby hands that will never been used for delicate work. Her son rarely travels with her, but wishes to remains at the Sand kingdom, growing close to Kankurou and Gaara. Kankurou, who never marries, treats the boy like he would a son.

He'll be Kazekage one day.

Shikamaru is a thoughtful ruler, and his people respect him and are grateful to him. His daughter, whom he raises in Konohagakure as a Leaf warrior princess (Naruto's words, not his own), resembles her mother in attitude and him in appears. Her hair is pin straight, and she always leaves it down, even when she's fighting.

She'll be Hokage one day.

_But you said they didn't get their happy ending_, you ask?

Well, in a way, they do. Despite the fact Temari is killed returning to Sunagakure at the young age of thirty and five, she found loyalty, and she found love and she found the sort of fulfillment a woman only understands after childbirth.

And what of Yashamaru?

The day of Temari's funeral, Naruto feels the fleeting presence of a strong chakra. When he asks Sasuke if he senses it, he says he doesn't. No one else seems to either. Looking around, he notices a stranger in the crowd. Her hair is cut short around her face, and she looks regretful to say the least.

_If only she had accepted_. He thinks he hears her say. And then she's gone.

Who knows where she went, really. Now that her mother was, perhaps she went and tried to live life as a normal woman. In any case, she was never seen again in Sunagakure or Konohagakure in the lifetime of anyone who even remembered the name Yashamaru.

And although there is no happily ever after for the one-armed Gaara who is always feared despite the trouble he goes through to prove to his people otherwise; for the bachelor Kankurou, who dies withoutseeing his kingdom restored to its former beauty and glory; for the widower Shikamaru,who loved his wife with all his heart and soul, despite the trouble she caused; for the dead, buriedTemari, they all experience fleeting happiness.

What else is there?

* * *

**I hope it wasn't that bad. If there are any questions I left unanswered, _please_ tell me. I won't be insulted, I promise. **

**Remember, if you want to read the version where Temari leaves with Yashamaru, wait for the next update. Mind you, just because Temari leaves with Yashamaru doesn't mean A) the ending will be sadder or that B) Shikamaru will marry Ino. It just means Temari leaves with Yashamaru, xP**

**If this is the last chapter you read, thank you again for reading this story. Show me some love.**


	7. Rejection?

**I hatedthis chapter the first timeI posted it,and it was on my mind all day. I don't like happy endings because I feel they aren't realistic. Even if the two get together, I don't believe everything should be solved. That's one of the reasons I disliked this chapter. So I deleted the first version (I was rather ashamed)and tweaked it quite a bit. Bwjaja.**

**The LAST chapter of Two Swans. I've really enjoyed writing this, and I'm grateful for the response it got. A few of you have been reading it from the beginning, and I thank you for sticking around. Even those that are reading it now, I appreciate that you took the time to read it.**

**Remember, just because Temari goes with Yashamaru doesn't mean she won't end up with Shika! xP**

**(x) means notes, which can be found below.**

Title**: Two Swans  
**Chapter**: Seven  
**Genre**: Fantasy/Romance  
**Characters**: major: Temari, Gaara, Kankurou, Shikamaru, Yashamaru, Hinata, minor: Sakura, Ino, Moegi's mother, Hiashi, Konohamaru, Moegi  
**Relationships**: ShikaTema, slight InoSaku, implied SasuNaru, implied HinataKiba**

**Notes:**

**1. I keep saying in her own BLANK way! Sorry, I just couldn't think of another phrase!  
****2. Where is Tsunade, you ask? Well, perhaps you haven't noticed—I didn't until the last chapter—that none of the older shinobis are in this story. Why? Well, that's because I've stuff them into another one! BWJAJAJAJAJA!  
****3. They don't know what the disease is, and in turn, don't know how its spread.  
****4. Lavender and sage are names of plants, apparently some that Yashamaru grew in her garden. Shikaka for Shikamaru's father and Yoshimo for his mother.

* * *

**

It took Temari a long time to fall asleep, worried as she was. When at last she did, it brought her little relief. _She _was already there, in her true form, waiting for the answer.

An answer. This could ruin her life or it could save her. Which one was it?

"Temari," she began, her voice smooth like honey. But honey sticks onto your hands long after you're sick of it, and the smell doesn't go away. "What have you decided?"

Tmeari doesn't say anything for several long seconds.

_If the choice were mine, it was Hanabi at stake here . . . I would probably go with Yashamaru_ . . .

_She's ruining our kingdom, Temari! I won't let her get away with it! Look at what she did to us . . ._

_You come with me, become my apprentice and my companion, and I'll extract her. If not, well, you don't know how to get rid of my mother . . . _

_Baby, I'll take care of you ._ . .

The voices orbit around in her head moths flying hectically towards a flame. And the flame is her final response, the decider of her fate.

"I will go with you," she replies with a defeated sigh, and turns away. "Let me rest in peace, please, now that you have your answer . . . I want to say goodbye in the morning." So she's chosen to go with her. Her heart and mouth had plotted against her mind and spoke before she could really realize it.

She can see their angry faces now . . . they're going to hate her forever.

But Yashamaru ignores her request, and follows instead her, and with an thin outstretched hand spins Temari around to face her. "Why say goodbye? So you can see the expression of hurt on their faces personally? Don't do that to them." Temari angrily pulls her hand away.

"Who are you to lecture me on what I should do to my brothers or not? _You_ hurt them, by placing that curse on them! I can't do I what I wish to!" Temari knows she's being childish, but right now that's not important.

Where has she learnt about love, about loyalty and the bitter side of betrayal, Temari wonders, looking into Yashamaru's passionate face. It seems not only Temari and her brothers have changed.

"Anyway," Temari continues heatedly, "do you want me to leave in the middle of the night, like some common thief? They'll think I was kidnapped." In the back of her mind, though, Temari does agree with Yashamaru. Seeing their reactions to her decision may be too much for her, and it's something she feels she can live without witnessing. It'll just be proving to the people at Konohagakure how _right_ they were about her.

They always did think she was a witch, someone they couldn't trust, a succubus waiting to suck their castle dry. Well, in this, they'll only have one out of three right, but they'll invent the rest.

"Your friend Hinata won't," Yashamaru adds slyly, slipping Temari out of her silent reverie.

"You don't miss a trick, do you?" Temari answers demurely, still mulling over the whether or not to face everyone with her decision.

"No . . . I really don't." There's a long silence after her words, and finally, Temari lifts her head to look Yashamaru straight in the face.

How old is this woman, really? How long was she holed up in the forest with her aging, trapped mother? She looks barely older than I am, but I know better than anyone how looks can be deceiving.

"Alright. Meet me outside my window. If you're half as clever as you claim to be, you'll know where it is. I'll climb out after I . . . do something." It's a pathetic ending, but she doesn't want to tell Yashamaru what she's planning on doing. She'll leave them a letter, and with any luck, Hinata will understand. Perhaps she could even cover for Temari?

"Be my guest. Write your little note. Just don't let them catch you. I can easily take care of anyone who gets in our way, but it will be . . . hmm, for lack of a better word, _troublesome_." Before Temari can snap a furious retort, Yashamaru is gone, and Temari is staring up at the ceiling instead.

She jumps out of bed, as quickly and quietly as she can manage. Standing there, she realizes she has no idea what to take with her. She regrets not asking Yashamaru about what she might need for their trip, but knows this is not the time for look backwards. Deciding, at last, to take nothing but the clothes on her back and Hinata's necklace, she hunts through her wardrobe for the most comfortable traveling clothes she can find.

Then for a pad of paper and a pen.

_Dear Hinata_, she scrawls, but then crumples the paper into a bag. It will attract too much attention to her and they'll question her directly until she gives in. Finding no better spot to place it, she stuffs it down her shirt. She begins again.

_Dear Shikamaru-_scratch. Crumple. Stuff.

_Dear Kankurou, Gaara, Shikamaru, and all the others that were kind to me these past few years_-scratch.Too long. This time she doesn't take the time to crumple the paper, and just continues without a greeting. _Don't look for me. I left Konohagakure of my own free will. Brothers, I send you all my love and enthusiasm, in hopes you can help our kingdom return to its former glory. Shikamaru, I thank you for all you have done for me, but I ask you not to cling to any ties you may have to me._ Don't cling to _me_, Temari silently whispers to herself—or to Shikamaru, more specifically._ Temari_.

She lays it on the mussed bed, and quickly pushes open the window. The cold air hits her like a slap, and she has to bite her tongue to stifle the cry. Balancing on the windowsill, she plans the best way of getting down. Rapidly deciding on a plan, she uses the uneven stones to ease herself down the wall, she reaches the grassy bottom with little trouble. Turning around, she immediately spots Yashamaru, a meter away, playing with her hair coolly. When she notices Temari's presence, she glances up at her with a slow grin.

Temari approaches, her feet making light _squish_ sounds against the wet grass. "Let's go, then," Temari greets the woman coldly, unconsciously moving her hand to clutch the necklace. Yashamaru's grin grows larger, until it almost looks like a grimace, and nods her head nonchalantly.

They set off, and the outcry the next morning is deafening.

* * *

Eight years. That's how long it takes for Temari to become a witch. Good at controlling her chakra, knowledge of herbs and flowers, solemn in demeanor. The two of them avoid people, for neither of them wants attention drawn to them. The climate is cold all the time, and for a short time Temari and Yashamaru dislike it immensely, both being girls born and raised in the hot weather of the Sand kingdom. Eventually, they grow accostumed to it, and live relatively content.

Yashamaru learns love. Temari gains knowledge.

For the first few years, Temari is still stiff and awkward around the older woman. In her eyes Yashamaru was a murderer who was only there to teach her what she wanted to know. But it was impossible to live with someone for as long as she did and realizes there was more to her than that.

She became so much more than that, in the end. Yashamaru was her teacher, her friend, her disciplinarian, and her mother. So many roles that Temari had lacked in her childhood.

"No, Temari. Concentrate on the _red mark_, not the ball."

"Aim for the apple. Use your chakra to _push_ it."

"Eat the _damn_ food before it gets cold! I don't care if you don't like carrots!"

Temari learns she has the ability to do things she had never imaged to be possible. It is hard, not only at the beginning, but in the middle and in the end. Yashamaru does not believe in giving her a break, not because she a female, nor because she's young. Temari enjoys the work, though.

It keeps her mind off her brothers, her kingdom . . . Shikamaru.

She misses them at night. Look up at the stars, she wonders if they're looking up at them as well. Well, probably not her brothers, but Shikamaru . . . yes, it's very likely.

He's a lazy bastard, painfully arrogant at times, and endearingly sexist. She wants nothing more on those silent nights than to see him, to hear his forgiveness and to hold him. Damn it, no. She wants to do a lot more than hold Shikamaru.

But these years don't last forever, very few things do. Yashamaru is not invincible, witch or not. And diseases don't differentiate between one human and another. The deadly disease eats at her bones, probably since before the curse. She's in excruciating pain for months before she dies, and Temari can do nothing more than try and numb the pain.

And when she's gone, Temari cries. She cries over the murderer, the teacher, the mother. She cries in the cold, empty cottage, where no one hears her but the stupid bird that don't care either way.

Temari buries her in their garden, where Yashamaru had raised their herbal remedies so carefully. She lays a couple of plants over the grave, unsure of their symbolism. She had never paid much attention to Yashamaru when she had started with them. That had been Yashamaru's one real passion. Herbs, their significance, their symbolism; flowers, their scent, their cycles.

Plants, even poisonous ones, weren't good or bad, Yashamaru always said, but neither, or perhaps both at the same time. Like people.

Temari holds back her tears, having decided that she had more self-control than that. Yashamaru would not have wanted Temari to cry on her account. But even so, she finds herself biting her tongue to fight them back. If Temari leaves, all Yashamaru's children will die, will wilt. She gathers what she can from the garden, packs what little she owns, and leaves the small cottage she has called home for the past eight years.

Traveling on her own reminds her of the brief time she had to herself before Shikamaru came along. Sitting up in the trees, concentrating on her task, keeping her brothers company at dusk. This brings her mind back to her brothers, and she wonders if Yashamaru's spell worked.

A month after they had arrived at the cottage, Temari had harried her until Yashamaru had begun the preparations for the spell to free Gaara of the soul of her mother. There was chanting, herbs filling the entire cottage with their aroma, and a bright flowing light that escaped from the open window. Then Yashamaru tells her a raw, scratchy voice that her mother is gone.

Temari realizes the next day that Yashamaru probably killed her mother with that spell. She doesn't know whether that makes Yashamaru a good person, or a bad person. Probably neither, or both at the same time.

She does not head in the direction of the Sand kingdom, though. Even after eight years, there is nothing she fears more than the expression on Kankurou's face when she tells him where she has been the last few years, and the word _traitor_ on his lips.

So she goes to the Leaf kingdom, instead. She doesn't know why; the thought of Shikamaru shunning her hurts her as much as imagining her brothers rejecting her. Perhaps she thinks he'll forgive her, regardless of Chouji's murder. Perhaps he'll open his arms to her, and whisper to her in gentle tones that his feelings haven't changed.

She reaches Konohagakure at midday, and the sun is shining brightly on the familiar castle. But there are too many people swarming around the castle, and she doesn't want to make a ruckus. All these years in solitude had made her a recluse. She didn't feel any need to be around people anymore and the thought of all these people's eyes on her . . . it makes her cringe.

She hides in the woods, then, hidden from them all. Lying on the outskirts, it seems as if she seems more than the people out in the open. She catches the little actions that completely give them away, the lies, the secret feelings, the anger. It's so _plain_ when you're on the outside.

Most of the faces of the people flitting around are unknown to her. How odd, how things have changed in only eight years. She barely recognizes anyone! She remembers when she could have been able to waves a silent hello to most of people that resided in the castle.

There are a couple of people she recognizes, though. Sakura and Ino, for one. Their hair has grown, and their faces look . . . more mature. Does hers? Like with the others, Temari sees the little things that the people around them are probably missing. The little touches, and small glances. Even if Temari had been an idiot, it's painfully obvious how the two of them feel towards each other. Friends don't slip their hands subtly up the other's skirt.

Well, at least that rules out the idea that Shikamaru married Ino. Although, Temari thinks sadly, that doesn't mean he hasn't married. Her hand slips upwards to rub the necklace between her thumb and forefinger.

And then, much later on, she watches as Hinata and her father take a walk nearby. Hinata still looks lovely, in her own timid way. They seem to have the same walk, the two Hyugas. There is where the similarities end.

"Father, I . . . I am going to take this trip, just . . . just as I do every year." Her voice hasn't gotten any stronger in the past eight years, but she is as determined as ever in her own quiet way (x).

"Why? They are _murderers_ by nature, Hinata, you should realize this. That is how they live. How can you willingly relate yourself to them?" His voice is so much _harder, _colder than Hinata's could ever be. You would never have guessed that she was his daughter, the way he spoke. As their voices fade with their footsteps, she hears Hinata say one last thing.

"Well, father, I-I suppose the mate of the . . . the venison you ate last night would s-say that same about you." Footsteps make odd noises on grass, but recognizing the sound is like second nature to Temari now. Hinata is walking away from her father. Temari silently sends her encouragement.

Finally it is dark, and general area around the castle is empty of people.

It is time. She is hesitant, though, and almost decides to stay in the tree, balanced on the tree branches. But Yashamaru did not teach her to be fearful or anything less than determined. And so, she lowers herself to the ground. Temari has learned the important skill of keeping quiet at all costs. As she crosses the field towards the castle, she knows that none of the guards will hear her. Even if she didn't remember where Shikamaru's room was, it was obviously the one with the ornate window and lovely view.

Standing below that window, she grips the necklace in a tight hold. So close to what she's been fear and looking forward to all these years. Is she feeling fear or excitement? Both, more likely than not. She climbs up the wall and through his open window—thank goodness, it was open—before she can let the doubts make her hesitant.

And then, there he is, after such a long wait. His hair is loose, and Temari realizes she's never seen it down before. She just stands there for longer than necessary, leaning against the windowsill, watching him sleep. Nara Shikamaru.

He's . . . Before she can finish the thought, Temari is shaking him awake gently, a hand over his mouth to stop him from crying out. "Shikamaru?"

They stare at each other in silence for a good couple of minutes before one of them finally speaks.

"Temari? What are you doing here?" His voice a bit muffled by her hand, so she removes it, perhaps sliding her fingers across the skin of his cheek more than necessary.

"I . . . I've come back," she answers lamely. She still hopes that maybe . . . just maybe, he won't ask where she's been, and he'll just take her back like nothing's changed.

Not likely. He's sitting up, his gaze intent and questioning. "Where did you go? Do you have _any _idea what your brothers thought happened? They stayed here a month _searching_ for you. I began to even distrust my own people, thinking one of them might have _hurt_ you. You _owe_ me—and your brothers—a good _long_ explanation." There's a short pause, but soon he adds something under his breath. "Your damn note wasn't very confidence-inspiring, either."

Temari stands up, turning her face away from his lest it show him something she doesn't walk revealed. "I . . . I can't. I can't explain."

He's standing next to her now, but she can barely make him out in the dark. "Temari," he says in a firm, demanding voice, "tell me." He reaches over and takes her hand, his cold fingers wrapping around hers, and she feels her defenses crumbing. Hell, they've been crumbling since she saw him lying there.

"Will you . . . will you promise not to hate me? No matter what I say?" Her words sound so much less firm and more pitiable than she meant them to be. Eight years of preparation, and this is how she's acting?

Pathetic.

"What did you _do_?" He asks, his tone now sounding accusing, unsure, reproaching. This isn't going as planned.

She pulls her hand away from his, almost glad to have her fingers back, and faces him. "Promise me, Shikamaru!"

"I'll accept you, and what you've done, when I hear it. What have you done?" His voice is desperate, but Temari still is reluctant to give in. "Temari, the fact that you refuse to tell me what happened it proof enough that you believe you have done something _wrong_." Logic, logic. Damn it, who needs logic?

She's got powers at her disposal that Shikamaru couldn't even dream of, but she's being defeated once again by his stupid, irksome logic?

"No! What I did was not _wrong_. I have not done a single creature harm in eight years' time!" Passionate, and too loud, she realizes too late. He's pushing her done on the bed, covering her with the blanket and lying down beside her himself. He shushes her quietly, and presses her against him.

His scent is encompassing her. It's in the blanket, on the bed, and that's not even including the fact that her face is pressed against his side. She could reach out and feel his heart beat.

She hears the footsteps outside, probably before he does. A door squeaks open. "Hokage?" She smells the faint aroma of wax, and the footsteps had been the powerful, supercilious footsteps of a warrior. A guard, more likely than not.

"It's okay, Konohamaru. Just talking to myself." Soon the boy is gone, and silence falls upon them once more. Her breath hitches, suddenly, and she wonders—or maybe it's more of a _hope_—that he's fallen asleep. Or that some twist of fate will cause them to end up with her lips against his. Instead, he pulls her away from him gently, though, and turns his body to her. Neither of them appears ready to get up, not just yet.

"Temari?" he whispers in a voice so low, she can barely be sure she heard it.

"I . . . She offered me a chance to learn how to control this power I have, and to free my brother's spirit from the terror inside that wing . . . I . . . accepted, and now she's . . ." A low cry escapes from her throat at the memory of the garden, and the buried body and . . . and . . .

"Who's _she_?" Shikamaru asks, a frown growing on his brow.

A long, hesitant pause. "Yashamaru."

He's out of the bed in an instant, the look on his face hidden by the shadows. Temari follows suit, crawling out from beneath the covers that smell deliciously of him, slower and more carefully than he had. "Shikamaru, I didn't do anything _wrong_. I'm stronger now, and I can do so much _good_ with my powers." With her hands she is reaching out to him, but he's pulling away—in disgust?

"She _killed_ Chouji, and forced your brothers to live as swans for two years. And. . . and you leave us for _her_?" His voice betrays the pain and hurt he feels, as well as the anger and frustration. No, no, no. This was the reaction she feared to receive from him.

"She did it all for her mother, Shikamaru. She just wanted to know freedom with her mother. Yes, she went about it in the completely wrong manner, but she offered to free my brother of that spirit inside! How could I refuse?" She wants to convince him, she wants to make him see what she understands to be true. "I did nothing wrong."

"You didn't even _tell_ us!"

"How could I? You would only have reacted the same way you do now! With suspicion, fear and closed-mindedness! Damn it, Shikamaru! I can cure diseases you don't even know the names of! Is that something_ wrong_?" Both have them forgot to be sly and quiet in thier anger.

"Yes! Yes, if you learnt these things from a _murdering _witch!"

"You wouldn't say this if your mother were dying slowly of some painful disease, and I had the ability to save her, would you?"

"It's a little late, Temari, for your heroics. My mother died last fall of a heart illness."

They're both silent, even at the pounding footsteps approaching quickly. Once they arrive, the warriors do not attack. Perhaps some of them recognize her from their childhoods, or the older ones remember one-sided conversations with her. In an case, they stare at Temari and Shikamaru with their confused gazes and surprised looks. "Damn you all. I could kill half of you before the rest could even think of attacking me." She doesn't plan on going through with her threat, though, and turns to leave.

If Shikamaru is going to be stubborn in his beliefs, then there is no reason for her to remain at Konohagakure any longer than she has to. She'll take her chances with Kankurou.

"Wait! Can . . .you really do what you say you can?" Temari faces the girl who spoke out with the hesitant voice in a flash, her eyes furious and alive with power.

"Would you like a sample of my power, girl?"

"My mother! She's _dying_! Won't . . . won't you save her? You said you could heal rare ailments (x)!" Even in the darkness, Temari can make out the sparkling tears in her eyes. She's too soft, it's painfully obvious. Perhaps the death of her mother will be the thing to toughen her up. That's what a good warrior is supposed to be—tough.

"Moegi, _shut up_. Don't talk to her, she's only bluffing. She can barely make two shirts, much less heal your mother!" It's the boy that came in first, the _Konohamaru_ from before. Temari turns her angry gaze at him, concentrating all the power at him.

"Don't make me _angry_, boy. I remember you, don't think I don't. I can do more than you think. Show me this woman. I will prove to you damn ignoramuses just how much you _don't_ know."

The girl, Moegi, shows them through the castle, and none of the make a single move toward Temari. She is satisfied with the fear she has instilled in them—even, it seems, in Shikamaru. He hasn't uttered a word through this entire exchange, and she is unsure of where Shikamaru stands in this. Does he too believe she is merely pretending to have power?

It's a door, a thin red X painted on it. Behind it is the sick woman, apparently. Is the X there to show that a disease-ridden person inhabits the room (x)? Temari pushes the door open in disgust, and takes a good look around. It's stuffy, and the atmosphere is thick with bad air. The first thing she does is pull open a window and open the curtains wide.

"No! What are you _doing_? The illness with spread and then we will find ourselves with an epi—" Temari silences the warrior that spoke up with a single glare, and turns back to the task at hand.

Looking over the woman, it seems that there is a problem with her lungs, especially with her breathing. This isn't something that Konohagakure's own medical team could not have figured out, though. What is so _different_ about this disease? "Give me three hours," she announces to the crowd that has accumulated outside the door.

"Even if you _do_ manage to heal her, Temari, don't think it's going to make it all better." Temari pretends she didn't hear Shikamaru's words and slams the door shut in their faces.

* * *

Even if she does, even if she does . . .

Shikamaru paces back and forth in his room, hoping that he falls through the floor and into Hell, just so he can be done with this torture. This is too much strain in his mind. She's making him crazy _still_.

She's so incredibly _troublesome_. She definitely hasn't changed in the time away.

Why did she do it, though? Who knows what that woman taught her, poisoned her mind with lies and false ideas, no doubt. And why did she return _here_, now? Why not flee back to her family, to her people? Did she have no pride?

Three hours, she asked for. If Sakura—their best medical warrior—could not find a cure for the woman, what hopes were there that _she_ would? Yashamaru could not have known cures; that went against everything a witch like her would know. Only curses and evil things, Yashamaru could teach. Not medicine and power that can _help_.

Of course not.

Then why is he imagining a future where Temari could . . . redeem Yashamaru with these powers? Where he . . . take her back?

Damn, these thoughts. Damn Yashamaru, damn Temari, **damn damn damn**.

"Hokage?" Shikamaru recognizes the quiet voice. Hinata. After all the time they've known each other, Hinata still finds it necessary to call him Hokage.

"Yes, Hinata?" He turns to face her, pausing temporarily in his pacing. She is standing hesitantly in the doorway, her expression groggy with sleep and hope.

"Is it true? Has she . . . has she _returned_? Lady Mine?" Optimistic, she sounds. He remembers, suddenly, that Hinata is leaving tomorrow on her annual trip to the Inuzuka castle. Perhaps she's hoping to see her old friend before she's gone.

"Yes. She's downstairs, paying a visit to Moegi's mother."

"W-what? Is she trying to _heal_ her?" Hinata's agitated, but that isn't very difficult to do to begin with. Her fingers meet halfway, and she fidgets for a little bit, before forcing her hands down again.

"I suppose so." There's a long pause, but Shikamaru breaks through it easily enough. "Did you know she was leaving to see Yashamaru eight years ago?"

Hinata tries to answer, but her stutter makes her increasingly difficult to understand. Shikamaru takes this as a yes.

"You couldn't have at least _told_ me?" He continues, his voice suddenly cold.

"She did not want me to. This w-was _her_ secret to tell, Hokage. The well-being of . . . of her brother lied in the b-balance, what other choice did she have?"

"She could have refused, it's as _easy _as that."

It's not long before a young warrior comes rushing up, practically imploding in his excitement. "She's awake, she's awake!" That's all Shikamaru needs to hear, and he speeding down to the Moegi's room, Hinata at his heels.

And there she is, leaning against the doorway, and smug smile on her face. As soon as she sees him, the smile only widens. She's like a sly fox this way. "What did I tell you, Shika? Did I do wrong?" Behind him, he hears Hinata cry out her name. Shikamaru brushes past Temari without a word, though. Inside the room, which seems to have been cleansed of its horrid smell, and replaced with lavender instead, Moegi is sitting on the bed, her arm around her mother and a blissful expression on her face.

Moegi's mother is breathing well for the first time in months, perhaps years. Although her face is thin—too thin—and her complexion is ghastly, she seems far better than she did three hours before. He turns back to face Temari, who still has that smirk on her face.

"So? Did I?"

* * *

She returns to Sunagakure, as she knows she must. It is strange, because she has not been to this place since before Gaara was born. It doesn't feel the slightest bit like home.

She is not welcomed as she expected. She finds only one of her brothers there to greet her . . . Gaara. He leads her up to his room for drinks, and explains what had occurred since her absence. As soon as it had been obvious that Temari was no longer at Konohagakure, Kankurou had left on his own in search of his sister. He had abandoned his post of Kazekage and left Gaara to travel to the Sand kingdom on his own.

Temari is angry, at first. How could Kankurou have left their younger sibling alone like that? With her gone, he was all Gaara had left. The sad truth doesn't really hit her for a couple of minutes. Apparently, Kankurou had not found her. Then where was he? There were two possibilities, both not ones she wanted. He was either still looking . . . or he was dead.

And Gaara had been left to lead this place as best he knew how. In the beginning, Gaara told his sister, he had lived among the former revolutionaries, too young to claim his place as Kazekage.

When he finally did take back Sunagakure from the grips of autocratic radicals, the people had made friends with were at his side, and the chaotic lifestyle of the people was easier to attempt to fix that way. Sunagakure was a much more peaceful place than Yashamaru had left it, thanks to Gaara.

But that didn't stop Temari from wishing Kankurou could come back.

And it turns out, the witch-mother _had_ fled from Gaara's body, just as Yashamaru had promised. Just before Gaara and Kankurou had left Konohagakure, Gaara had stopped hearing the woman's whisper words in the back of his mind.

So she _had_ killed her own mother. Hopefully, they were together . . . wherever the dead go.

But she could not _stay _in Sunagakure. Gaara had his only family now—he had married a young woman by the name of Kyo; Temari wished them the best of luck—and he was a good man. He had no need of her, no matter how much he disagreed.

And this place didn't feel like. Even when she returned for a short time to the tower of her youth, the nearby lake and even her own room seem so far away. It was too long ago; it all seems foreign, as if the room had belonged to another girl, not Temari.

Before she leaves, Gaara makes her promise that she will visit often . . . he wants his children to know their aunt. She reluctantly agrees, and returned to Konohagakure.

Where Shikamaru was waiting for her.

He hadn't annulled their marriage, she had expected . . . and feared. Which saved them the time from marrying again.

But it was not long before Temari was causing Shikamaru trouble. Most of the people in the castle had not personally known Temari, or Mine, but had only heard her story through another source. Even some of the people that had turned against her, and wished her gone. Eventually the tension was too much, and they tried . . . well, they tried something. They never got the chance to initate their plan before Temari had launched her own counterattack.

Unfortunately, she had misjudged her own strength, and fear—she had not forgotten the damage the warrior had done to her in that dungeon eight years before—and before she knew it, a man was dead. It probably wasn't _him_, and even if it had been, it made no difference to the people of Konohagakure. They did not see it as vengance, as Temari personally saw it.

It was the name of Hokage, or Temari. That was the decision they left Shikamaru. There were some who tried to persuade the general populace, like Hinata and even Ino. But to no avail; they only saw the blood spilled on their behalf, the betrayal they saw in Temari's decision to learn from Yashamaru.

Shikamaru chose Temari. Leaving behind his friends, his life, everything he had ever known, he traveled with Temari. He doesn't care who takes over after him, the betrayal of his people making him bitter. Shikamaru was not a traveler by nature, though, and neither was Temari. Although Temari had never really known a true home, her heart yearned for one. She found one in Shikamaru.

Life resumes for Temari much like before. The two of them find a home in an obscure city closer to Sunagakure than to Konohagakure, and each of them revel in the privacy it gives them. Temari works as a residential witch, and eventually her reputation grows so that people flood from all over for her treatment or advice.

Her powers were few compared to others'—Naruto, Sasuke, Lee, just to name a few—but these facts went unheard. Sasuke and Naruto disappeared from Konohagakure because of the attitude people still had towards Sasuke because of his betrayal. After a particularly vicious attack, the two of them had abandoned their city. Their story was far too alike to Temari's own, and she found herself seriously doubting the honor of the warriors of Konohagkure. Lee was far too modest, and after all, limited in power only to combat.

Although her power did not wane with time, her took as much time as possible to care for her children. The pain of childbirth was remarkably close to her task, and wonders if she was preparing for this all along. Lavender, Sage, Shikaka and Yoshimo (x).

Eventually, Shikaka left for Sunagakure, and remained there for most of his life, learning the ways of the Sand kingdom, and eventually becoming Kazekage himself much later in his life. Lavender and Sage, twin siblings, left their stifling home in search of excitement and adventure, like the kind their parents went through. They returned more than a decade later, with stories to tell and scars to prove them.

Yoshimo stayed with both her parents until they grew old, enjoying their company, and even going as far as bringing her husband to live with _her_, even though the custom was for the woman to live with the man.

Shikamaru and Temari never did return to Konohagakure, although every so often they got visits from old friends. When they die, only months apart, the two of them were buried simply in a nearby cemetery. A few decades afterwards, their story was most erased from memory, living on only in a story told by mothers at bedtime, or by old grandparents speaking of different times.

Two changes to seven, Yashamaru becomes a power-hungry witch and the betrayal of a people morphs into a happy ending for all.

* * *

**Bwjaja. I majorly tweaked the ending. Hopefully for the better.**

**I TOLD YOU SHIKA WOULDN'T MARRY INO!**

**By the way, for those that may be interested, I am considering writing _another_ side story. A SasuNaru one (suggested by Uzamaki Liliana) using the Snow White idea (yes, this is where the older shinobis will pop up). Check it out, if you enjoyed this story. Once again, thank you for reading this.**

**Now, go to bed.**

**Or better yet, show me some LOVE first.**


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